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^                              PRINCETON,    N.  J. 

Purchased  by  the  Hammill   Missionary  Fund. 

BV    3625    .M2    T68                                ^ 
Townsend,    W.    J.    1835-1915. 
Madagascar 

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'AS   THE    FLAMES    ROSE,   THEY    LIFTED    UP   THEIR   VOICES 

IN    SONGS   OF   I'RAISE."  [/>.  94. 


MADACxASCAR 


3t6  flIM65ionaric0  anb  fIDartv>r5 


BV 
/ 

WILLIAM  JOHN  TOWNSEND,  D.D. 

AUTHOU    OF    "'IIIE   GREAT    SCHOOLMEN    OF   THE    MIDDLE   AGFS  ;  "    "ROBERT 
MORRISON,    THE    PIONEER   OF   CHINESE    MISSIONS,"    ETC. 


^-^ 


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I'Jjf^r^^^^iS 


NEW    YORK   AND   CHICAGO. 

Iflemino  Hd.  IRevell  Company?, 

Publishers  of  Evangelical  Literature. 


PREFACE. 


ry^HE    marvellous    story   of    Christianity   in    the 
Island  of  Madasrascar  is  one  that  should   be 


i 


familiar  to  all  who  take  an  interest  in  the 
growing  kingdom  of  the  Lord  Jesus.  The 
young  people  of  the  Churches  and  Sunday-schools 
especially  should  read  the  story,  that  their  enthusiasm 
in  holy  work  may  be  quickened.  It  is  with  this  object 
that  these  pages  have  been  written.  The  facts  here 
recorded  have  been  gathered  from  many  sources,  but 
mainly  from  the  "  History  of  Madagascar,"  in  2  vols., 
compiled  from  original  documents,  by  Rev.  W.  Ellis, 
a  valuable  repertory  of  information  relating  to  the 
subject  ;  "  Three  Visits  to  Madagascar,"  and  "  The 
Martyr  Church,"  also  by  Rev.  W.  Ellis  ;  "  Madagascar 
and  its  People,"  by  Mr.  J.  Sibree  ;  and  "  Madagascar  : 

V 


VI 


PREFACE. 


Its  Missions  and  its  Martyrs,"  by  Rev.  E.  Prout.  The 
excellent  article  on  Madagascar  in  the  invaluable 
"  Encyclopaedia  of  Missions,"  recently  issued  by 
Messrs.  Funk  &  Wagnalls,  with  the  reports  and 
periodicals  of  various  Missionary  Societies,  have  also 
supplied  many  of  the  facts  herein  related.  The 
writer  earnestly  hopes  that  this  little  book  may 
contribute  to  the  deepening  interest  in  Missions, 
which  is  the  most  cheering  characteristic  of  this 
century. 

W.     J.     TOWNSEND. 


^^^S^^^^Srsd^^^i^-^^^^s 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

MADAGASCAR  AND  ITS  PEOPLE. 

CHAPTER  II. 

INTRODUCTION   OF   CHRISTIANITY       . 


CHAPTER   IV. 

THE   NOBLE   ARMY   OF    MARTYRS 

CHAPTER  V. 

THE   FIRE   OF   SUCCESSIVE   PERSECUTIONS 


PAGE 

9 


24 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE   GOSPEL   ROOTING    ITSELF — GATHERING    STORM  .         47 


72 


87 


VIU 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  VI. 
THE   DAWN   OF   FREEDOM  AND   PROSPERITY 


PAGE 

no 


CHAPTER  VII. 

A   CHRISTIAN    KINGDOM   ESTABLISHED 


138 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

PROGRESS,   PAST  AND   PRESENT 


155 


MADAGASCAR: 

ITS    MISSIONARIES    AND    MARTYRS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

MADAGASCAR   AND   ITS    PEOPLE. 

"The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  compared,  not  to  any  great 
kernel  or  nut,  but  to  a  grain  of  mustard  seed,  which  is  one  of 
the  least  of  grains,  but  hath  in  it  a  property  and  spirit  hastily 
to  set  up  and  spread." — Lo7-d  Bacon. 

MADAGASCAR  is  the  third  largest  island  in 
the  world.  It  lies  in  the  Indian  Ocean,  about 
three  hundred  miles  from  the  south-east  coast 
of  Africa,  from  which  it  is  separated  by  the 
Mozambique  Channel.  It  is  980  miles  long,  and  in 
its  broadest  part,  which  is  near  the  middle,  is  350 
miles  across.  Its  area  is  nearly  four  times  larger  than 
that  of  England  and  Wales. 

Its  physical  configuration  is  very  varied.  There  is 
an  elevated  mountainous  region,  occupying  a  large 
portion  of  the  interior,  and  this  contains  four  ranges 

9 


lO      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

of  mountains,  stretching  from  north  to  south  irregularly. 
The  highest  mountains,  one  of  which  rises  9000  feet 
above  the  level  of  the  sea,  are  in  Imerina.  There  are 
several  peaks  which  rise  from  5000  to  6000  feet,  and 
present  a  grandly  picturesque  appearance.  This  hilly 
region  is  in  every  respect  the  finest  part  of  the  island. 
The  climate  here  is  delightful  ;  beautiful  plains  and 
valleys,  carefully  cultivated  and  wonderfully  fertile, 
stretch  out  in  many  directions,  and  in  this  district  also 
the  people  are  the  most  industrious  and  intelligent. 

As  might  readily  be  supposed  from  the  numerous 
hills  and  mountains,  the  island  is  watered  by  many 
streams  and  rivers,  although,  for  want  of  sufficient 
depth,  few  of  them  can  be  used  for  purposes  of  naviga- 
tion. On  the  eastern  side  a  long  chain  of  lagoons 
extends  for  nearly  300  miles,  and  small  lakes  exist 
here  and  there,  the  largest  of  which  is  twenty-five 
miles  in  length. 

The  island  is  of  volcanic  origin,  and  recent  research 
has  discovered  a  volcanic  range  extending  over  a  great 
part  of  the  mainland,  and  although  no  active  volcano 
now  exists,  there  is  no  doubt  that  in  past  times  the 
country  has  been  subject  to  violent  eruptions.  The 
geological  formations  consist  of  granite,  gneiss,  and 
basalt.  The  general  aspect  of  the  country  is  that  of 
bare  rolling  moors,  interspersed  with  stretches  of 
bright  red  and  brown  clay  lands.  But  immediately 
below  the  hilly  region  is  a  dense  forest  belt  which 
extends  almost  entirely  round  the  island,  and  contains 
many  kinds  of  valuable  timber.  The  climate  in  the 
low  country  stretching  down  to  the  coast  is  hot  and 
damp,  producing  malaria  and  miasma  of  very  fatal 
nature. 


^^^^■liiS 


MADAGASCAR   AND   ITS    PEOPLE.  1 3 

The  flora  and  faima  of  Madagascar  are  most 
abundant.  Hundreds  of  species  have  been  found 
which  are  peculiar  to  it,  and  very  many  are  of  rare 
beauty.  About  250  varieties  of  ferns  have  been  dis- 
covered, and  the  list  is  far  from  complete.  Orchids 
are  innumerable  and  unrivalled  for  their  beauty.  The 
country  is  a  happy  hunting-ground  both  for  botanists 
and  entomologists,  as  plant  life  and  insect  life 
generally  exist  side  by  side  in  abundance  and  variety. 

The  smaller  birds  and  animals  abound  in  endless 
varieties,  but  there  are  none  of  the  larger  beasts  of 
prey  to  be  found.  There  are  a  few  large  birds  of 
prey,  but  the  numerous  small  birds  are  of  beautiful 
plumage,  and  mostly  peculiar  to  the  island.  Cattle, 
sheep,  pigs,  and  poultry  have  been  naturalised  during 
the  last  two  centuries,  and  are  now  as  common  as  in 
England.  Almost  all  kinds  of  food  and  fruit  are 
produced  which  grow  in  China  and  India.  Rice  is 
the  staple  food  of  the  people,  and  is  very  plentiful. 

The  people  of  Madagascar,  called  the  Malagasy, 
are  sprung  from  the  Malays  —  Polynesian  stock 
rather  than  African,  although  it  is  most  likely  the 
original  inhabitants  were  from  South  Africa.  It  is 
supposed  that  the  present  race  came  to  the  island  at 
different  times  and  gradually  overpowered  or  sup- 
planted the  first  inhabitants.  They  are  divided  into 
numerous  tribes,  who  all  speak  the  same  language, 
although,  as  in  England,  several  dialects  are  found. 
There  was  no  written  character  and  consequently  no 
books  or  manuscripts  until  Christian  missionaries 
reduced  the  language  to  writing  sixty  years  ago. 

Whilst  the  people  were  not  civilised  until  they  had 
the  arts  and  customs  of  civilised  life  introduced  to 


14      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

them  through  Christianity,  they  have  never  been  dis- 
graced by  the  barbarism  of  many  heathen  islanders. 
They  maintained  a  form  of  government  of  a  feudal 
character.  The  land  and  the  people  were  in  the 
hands  of  the  nobles,  the  rulers  were  moderate  in  the 
exercise  of  their  authority,  and  the  people  were  law- 
abiding  in  their  civil  life.  There  were  several  powerful 
tribes  which  occupied  the  chief  part  of  the  island,  and 
which  were  sub-divided  into  numerous  clans.  These 
tribes,  under  the  command  of  their  own  chieftains, 
sometimes  waged  war  upon  their  neighbours,  causing 
great  loss  of  life,  not  only  by  the  battles  fought, 
but  even  more  still  by  the  starvation  and  fever 
which  nearly  always  were  consequent  upon  the 
strife. 

The  great  blot  upon  the  social  life  of  the  Malagasy 
was  their  system  of  slavery.  A  large  portion  of  the 
population  Vv'as  enslaved,  comprising  chiefly  bankrupt 
debtors  and  prisoners  of  war,  and  a  considerable  slave 
trade  was  kept  up  with  the  Arab  dealers.  The  chief 
employment  of  the  people  was  agriculture,  but  several 
handicrafts  were  practised,  such  as  spinning,  weaving, 
and  working  in  metals.  Their  houses  were  built  chiefly 
of  hard  red  clay,  with  high  pitched  roofs,  thatched 
with  grass  or  rushes.  After  the  introduction  of 
Christianity  a  considerable  import  and  export  trade 
sprang  up  between  them  and  European  traders. 

Although  the  people  at  the  commencement  of  the 
present  century  were  not  sunken  in  the  revolting  im- 
moralities which  characterised  some  of  the  islanders 
of  the  Pacific,  yet  their  morals  were  in  many  respects 
exceedingly  low.  Polygamy  was  generally  practised 
and  chastity  unknown.      Theft,  trickery,  and   lying 


MADAGASCAR   AND   ITS    PEOPLE.  1 5 

were  almost  universal,  whilst  masses  of  the  people 
were  incorrigibly  lazy.  Infanticide  was  frequent, 
and  drunkenness  prevalent  in  some  parts  of  the 
island.  Human  life  and  suffering  were  reckoned 
of  no  account,  and  punishment  by  death  in  cruel 
forms  was  inflicted  for  trivial  crimes. 

It  can  scarcely  be  said  that  the  Malagasy  had  any 
system  of  religion  or  belief.  They  believed  in  an 
Almighty  Being  who  was  the  ruler  of  all  things,  and 
they  had  rude  ideas  concerning  lesser  deities  who 
presided  over  certain  localities  or  particular  interests. 
But  they  had  no  forms  of  worship,  no  temples,  scarcely 
any  idols,  no  priesthood  and  no  ceremonial.  Their 
language  contains  some  traces  of  an  ancient  belief  in 
the  leading  truths  of  natural  religion,  but  in  later 
times  the  recognition  of  these  had  died  out.  Their 
idolatry  took  the  form  of  Fetichism,  and  they  believed 
in  charms,  as  having  the  power  to  protect  them  from 
evil  or  to  confer  benefits  upon  them.  They  prac- 
tised divination  and  witchcraft,  and  they  had  curious 
ordeals  for  the  detection  of  crime.  Great  sacrifices  of 
fowls  and  sheep  were  made  at  harvest  time,  and  a 
tradition  exists  that  on  important  occasions,  human 
sacrifices  were  offered  by  the  coast  tribes.  A  large 
class  of  people  existed  as  sorcerers,  diviners,  and 
tellers  of  unlucky  days  and  signs,  who  lived  upon  the 
superstitious  feelings  of  the  people. 

A  very  curious  account  is  given  of  the  state  idols, 
by  Mrs.  Ellis,  who  saw  them  borne  in  the  procession 
at  the  coronation  of  King  Radama  II.  She  says  : — 
"  There  were  about  thirteen  in  number,  and  were 
carried  on  tall,  slender  poles  about  ten  feet  high. 
There  was  in  most  of  them  little  resemblance  to  any- 


l6      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

thing  in  heaven  or  in  earth.  Dirty  pieces  of  silver 
chain  ;  silver  balls  from  the  size  of  a  marble  to  that 
of  a  hen's  egg  ;  pieces  of  coral  or  bone,  or  silver  orna- 
ments intended  to  represent  shark's  teeth,  with  narrow 
strips  of  scarlet  cloth  one  or  two  feet  long — such  were 
the  objects  on  which  the  security  and  prosperity  of  the 
nation  were  formerly  supposed  to  depend."*  A  very 
interesting  description  of  the  destruction  of  the  national 
idols  in  1869  is  given  by  one  present  on  theoccasion,who 
describes  the  chief  idol  as  being  "  a  piece  of  wood  two 
or  three  inches  long,  and  as  large  as  the  middle  finger 
of  a  man's  hand,  wrapped  in  two  thicknesses  of  scarlet 
silk  about  three  feet  long  and  three  inches  wide,  the 
wood  pointed  at  one  end,  and  movable  in  the  silk, 
with  two  silver  chains,  about  three  inches  in  length, 
at  either  end  of  the  silk.  It  was  placed  in  a  small 
case  made  of  a  portion  of  a  young  tree  hollowed  out. 
There  was  no  carving  or  ornamental  work  upon  it. 
This  idol  was  the  guardian  of  the  sovereign  and  of  the 
kingdom  ;  others,  as  that  protecting  against  serpents, 
that  preserving  the  rice  crop  from  harm,  etc.,  were 
still  more  rude  than  that  already  described.''^ 

Persons  suspected  of  witchcraft  were  subjected  to 
the  tangena,  or  poison  ordeal.  Political  offenders  were 
made  to  undergo  the  same  test.  The  tangena  nut  was 
a  powerful  poison,  but  it  acted  only  as  a  violent  emetic 
if  administered  in  minute  doses.  Innocence  was  sup- 
posed to  be  declared  by  the  vomiting  of  three  small 
pieces  of  fowl  which  had  been  swallowed  whole.  The 
suspected  person  first  ate  a  quantity  of  rice,  and  then 

*  "  Madagascar  :  its  Social  and  Religious  Progress,"  by  Mrs. 
Ellis,  1863. 

t  "  Encyclopaedia  of  Missions,"  vol.  ii.  p.  7. 


MADAGASCAR   AND   ITS   PEOPLE.  \J 

a  portion  of  the  tangena  nut  was  scraped  into  the 
juice  of  a  banana.  A  prayer  was  offered  by  the 
accuser  to  the  spirit  of  the  poison,  containing  the 
most  terrible  imprecations,  but  the  strain  of  which 
was  to  the  effect  that,  if  the  accused  were  guilty,  the 
guilt  might  be  revealed,  but  if  innocent,  the  three 
pieces  of  fowl  received  might  be  rejected.  If  they 
were  not,  the  culprit  was  beaten  to  death,  and  the 
body  buried  in  a  degrading  manner,  or  left  to  be 
devoured  by  dogs.  More  than  one-fourth  of  those 
who  underwent  the  ordeal  died  from  its  effects,  and 
of  those  who  survived  many  experienced  serious 
affliction  for  the  remainder  of  their  lives. 

The  capital  of  Madagascar  is  Antananarivo,  the 
largest  city  in  the  island,  and  containing  about 
100,000  inhabitants.  It  has  been  entirely  rebuilt 
since  the  introduction  of  Christianity,  and  is  now 
a  fine  city,  with  royal  palaces  and  government  offices, 
four  handsome  churches  built  in  memory  of  the 
Christian  martyrs,  whose  history  will  be  related  in 
subsequent  pages  of  this  volume,  with  many  other 
important  edifices,  such  as  the  College,  the  schools, 
and  hospitals  of  the  London  Missionary  Societies. 
Next  in  importance  to  the  capital  is  the  city  of 
Mojanga  in  the  north-west,  with  14,000  people. 
Tamatave  is  the  principal  port  on  the  east  coast, 
with  a  population  of  6000.  Some  other  towns 
are  scattered  over  the  island,  with  populations  of 
5000  downwards,  and  the  whole  number  of  the 
people  is  estimated  at  5,000,000. 

In  the  year  1702,  a  ship  sailing  from  London  to 
India  was  wrecked  on  the  south-east  coast  of  Mada- 
gascar near  Port  Dauphine,     Many  of  the  passengers 

B 


1 8      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

and  crew  escaped  with  their  lives,  and  dispersing  over 
the  mainland  were  heard  of  no  more.  A  boy  named 
Robert  Drury,  then  fourteen  years  of  age,  after  endur- 
ing great  suffering,  became  a  domestic  slave  in  the 
households  of  various  native  masters,  experiencing 
alternate  kindness  and  cruelty  at  their  hands. 

He  afterwards  recorded,  in  a  very  simple  and  natural 
manner,  much  interesting  information  as  to  the  char- 
acter and  habits  of  the  islanders,  and  it  is  to  him  that 
the  English  owe  their  first  knowledge  of  Madagas- 
car and  its  inhabitants.  He  narrates  that  after  he 
escaped  from  the  wreck,  the  group  of  survivors  with 
whom  he  was  associated  were  taken  before  the  chief 
of  that  part  of  the  island  and  put  to  death  in  the  most 
barbarous  manner,  he  alone  being  preserved  alive. 
He  remained  in  slavery  for  several  years,  being 
employed  in  tending  cattle,  driving  them  to  and 
from  the  water,  slaughtering  them,  digging  wild 
yams,  and  cultivating  bees.  Yearning  for  freedom, 
he  seized  an  opportunity  of  making  his  escape,  and 
fled  to  a  seaport  on  the  western  coast.  Here  he  was 
seized  by  a  chieftain,  and  trained  to  fight  in  his  ser- 
vice. After  fifteen  years'  exile,  he  was  ransomed  by 
his  parents,  with  whom  he  had  been  able  to  commu- 
nicate through  some  visitors  calling  at  the  port,  and 
to  his  unspeakable  joy,  he  returned  to  his  native  land. 
Very  much  of  the  information  we  possess  concerning 
the  Malagasy  is  due  to  the  interesting  narrative  of 
Robert  Drury. 

During  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries 
the  most  powerful  tribe  was  the  Sakalava,  which  was 
divided  into  two  great  branches,  the  Northern  and  the 
Southern.     The  tribes  of  the  Hovas  and  the  Betsileos 


19 


MADAGASCAR   AND   ITS   PEOPLE.  21 

were  heavily  oppressed  by  the  Sakalava  and  regarded 
with  supreme  contempt.  Indeed,  they  were  reckoned 
as  the  lowest  and  most  degraded  of  all  the  tribes 
upon  the  island.  The  district  they  inhabited  was 
called  Imerina,  and  in  1785  the  chief  of  the  Hovas 
succeeded  in  uniting  the  whole  of  the  tribes  of  this 
district  under  his  command.  He  then  attached  to 
himself  several  tribes  or  clans  in  the  adjacent  dis- 
tricts, and  so  became  the  leader  of  a  formidable  con- 
federacy; he  was  strengthening  his  position,  with  a 
view  to  throwing  off  the  dominion  of  the  Sakalavas, 
when  he  was  attacked  by  a  fatal  sickness.  He  hastily 
summoned  home  his  son  Radama,  then  seventeen  years 
of  age,  and  who  was  under  the  care  of  Arab  teachers, 
and  on  the  father's  decease,  this  boy  was  proclaimed 
chief  or  king  in  his  stead. 

Radama  had  early  given  proof  of  much  shrewdness 
and  tenderness  of  disposition.  When  he  was  a  little 
child  his  father  and  mother  quarrelled,  with  the  result 
that  his  mother  was  divorced,  and  sent  home  to  her 
father.  One  day,  when  his  father  was  absent,  the 
boy  got  a  chicken  and  tied  it  to  the  leg  of  a  chair. 
When  his  father  returned  he  asked  who  had  done  this, 
and  was  told  it  was  Radama.  The  child  was  called, 
and  asked  what  he  meant  by  his  action.  He  answered, 
"  It  was  a  little  chicken  crying  for  its  mother."  The 
father  took  the  hint,  sent  for  his  wife,  and  reinstated 
her  in  her  position. 

The  early  life  of  Radama  was  remarkable  for  its 
temperance  and  purity.  The  father  thought  this  the 
evidence  of  a  feeble  mind,  and  actually  offered  bribes 
to  those  who  could  succeed  in  leading  his  son  into 
vice.     There  were  but  too  many  base  beguilers  ready 


52      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  IMISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

for  the  vile  work,  and  they  pursued  it  with  such  suc- 
cess that  in  a  few  years  a  healthy  constitution  was 
destroyed,  and  a  life  terminated,  which  might  have 
been  a  blessing  and  an  honour  to  the  nation. 

Radama  was  a  man  of  extraordinary  qualities.     He 
was  energetic,  ambitious,  shrewd,  had  a  keen  insight 


TVl'hS   OF    MALAGASV. 

into  human  nature,  and  he  possessed  the  remarkable 
power  of  attaching  men  to  himself,  and  bending  them 
to  his  purposes.  He  imbibed  from  his  father  the 
desire  to  cast  off  the  yoke  of  the  Sakalavas,  and 
thus  to  become  the  king  of  the  whole  nation. 

During  his  reign,  from  1810  to  1828,  he  gained  pos- 
session of  two-thirds  of  the  island.    But  he  saw  clearly 


MADAGASCAR   AND   ITS   PEOrLE.  23 

that,  if  he  were  fully  to  realise  his  purpose,  he  must 
have  an  army  supplied  with  fire-arms,  and  trained  in 
European  drill  and  tactics.     During  the  war  between 
England    and    France,  the   neighbouring   islands   of 
Mauritius  and  Bourbon  came  into  the  possession  of 
the  English,  and  this  acquisition  included  the  sur- 
render of  some  French  dependencies  in  Madagascar, 
which  had  been  established  many  years  before.     The 
new  governor  of  the  Mauritius,  Sir  Robert  Farquhar, 
was  earnestly  desirous  of  abolishing  the  slave  trade  in 
the  Indian  Ocean,  of  which  Madagascar  was  the  chief 
seat.     Radama  entered  into  a  treaty  with  him  to  stop 
the  export  of  slaves  on  condition  that  he  received  in 
compensation  a  supply  of  British  arms,  ammunition, 
and  uniforms,  as  well  as  training  for  His  soldiers.     He 
sent  a  number  of  youths  to  be  trained  in  England  and 
in  Mauritius,  and  an  English  agent,  Mr.  Hastie,  was 
despatched  to  reside  at  Antananarivo,  who  cordially 
co-operated  with  the  king  in  promoting  the  material 
interests  of  the  country. 

Radama   during   his   reign   succeeded    in    making 
himself  master  of  the  whole  island  with  the  exception 
of  two  districts  in  the  south.     Thus  political  unity 
was  accomplished  as  a  preparation  through  Providence 
for  the  propagation  of  Christianity.     The  king  was  at 
once  a  skilful  soldier  and  a  wise  statesman.     He  had 
become    convinced    of  the   superiority  of  European 
civilisation,  and  earnestly  laboured  to  introduce  many 
forms  of  it  into  his  kingdom.     If  in  his  private  life 
he  had  kept  free  from  vice,  he  might  have  lived  to 
have  matured  the  reforms  he  introduced,  but  indul- 
gence in  drink  and  licentiousness  of  living  cut  him 
down  before  he  had  reached  his  prime. 


CHAPTER  II. 


INTRODUCTION   OF   CHRISTIANITY. 


"  There  never  was  found  in  any  age  of  the  world,  either 
philosopher,  or  sect,  or  law,  or  discipline  which  did  so  highly 
exalt  the  public  good  as  the  Christian  faith." — Lord  Bacon. 

MADAGASCAR  was  discovered  by  the  Portu- 
guese in  1506.  They  established  a  colony 
there,  and  introduced  some  Romish  priests, 
who  sought  to  propagate  their  religion  in  the 
eastern  provinces.  The  French  broke  up  the  Portu- 
guese settlement,  and  the  Romish  mission  was  aban- 
doned. But  about  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 
century  another  attempt  was  made  to  convert  the 
people  to  the  Roman  Catholic  faith.  A  bishop,  with 
a  company  of  priests  and  other  helpers,  sought  to 
mission  the  tribes  along  the  east  coast,  but  without 
much  success.  After  some  time  the  effort  came  to  a 
disastrous  end.  The  leader  of  the  priests  was  not 
content  to  allow  the  Gospel  to  win  its  way  legitimately 
with  the  people,  but  sought  to  force  the  process  of 
conversion  by  commanding  them  to  abandon  their 
evil  practices,  and  threatening  them  with  the  vengeance 
24 


INTRODUCTION   OF   CHRISTIANITY.  25 

of  the  French  if  they  refused.  The  result  was  that 
the  priest  and  his  followers  were  ruthlessly  put  to 
death.  A  decimating  slaughter  by  the  French  followed 
this  impolitic  act,  and  thus  cruelty  and  persecution 
became  associated  in  the  minds  of  the  natives  with 
the  very  name  of  Christianity.  This  feeling  lingered 
even  to  the  present  century,  and  made  the  introduction 
of  the  Gospel  in  the  island  somewhat  more  difficult 
than  otherwise  would  have  been  the  case. 

At  the  close  of  the  last  century  the  London 
Missionary  Society  was  engaged  in  wistfully  scanning 
every  part  of  the  heathen  world  to  discover  where  it 
might  best  disseminate  a  knowledge  of  Christ  and 
disperse  the  gloom  of  idolatry  and  barbarism.  It  had 
its  attention  early  aroused  to  the  claims  and  needs  of 
Madagascar,  and  in  1796  it  began  to  gather  information 
as  to  the  island,  its  climate,  and  its  inhabitants. 

In  1798,  when  Dr.  Vanderkemp  sailed  for  South 
Africa,  he  received  instructions  to  use  any  practicable 
means  to  facilitate  the  commencement  of  a  mission 
among  the  Malagasy,  and  in  1799  he  wrote  to  the  Com- 
mittee stating  that  as  the  result  of  his  inquiries  he 
was  prepared  to  strongly  recommend  the  immediate 
sending  out  of  three  or  four  agents.  Nothing  was 
done  in  the  matter  for  several  years  until  Dr.  Van- 
derkemp, being  so  impressed  with  the  importance  of 
the  work,  decided  in  spite  of  his  advanced  years  and 
the  perils  of  the  undertaking  to  go  there  himself 
While  he  was  making  preparations  for  this  purpose, 
his  noble  career  was  terminated  by  death. 

Not  till  18 17  were  definite  steps  taken  towards  the 
desired  end.  Then  the  Committee  appointed  the 
Revs.  S.  Bevan  and   D.  Jones  to  proceed  to  Mada- 


26      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

gascar  and  attempt  missionary  work.  They  had  both 
been  students  under  Rev.  M.  Philips  of  Newodalvvyd, 
and  removed  from  thence  to  complete  their  mission- 
ary training  under  Rev.  Dr.  Bogue  at  Gosport,  They 
were  ordained  for  the  work,  at  Menaddlwyd,  Car- 
diganshire, in  August,  1 8 17,  and  they  sailed  for 
Mauritius  in  February,  1818,  arriving  there  in  July, 
Leaving  their  wives  and  infant  children  at  Mauritius, 
the  two  missionaries  sailed  for  Madagascar  and 
reached  Tamatave  on  the  i8th  of  August.  They 
had  been  much  discouraged  by  the  many  unfavour- 
able representations  of  the  country  they  had  re- 
ceived from  all  quarters,  but  bravely  they  resolved  to 
risk  the  attempt  and  enter  it  in  the  name  of  Jesus. 

On  landing  they  were  introduced  to  Jean  Rene,  the 
chief  of  Tamatave,  and  Mr.  Bragg  an  English  trader 
who  was  settled  there.  Rene  was  not  sanguine  as  to 
their  object,  but  undertook  to  use  his  influence  on  their 
behalf.  He  advised  them  to  write  to  King  Radama, 
asking  permission  to  commence  work  in  his  neigh- 
bourhood, but  explained  that  just  then  the  king 
was  greatly  incensed  against  the  English  because  of 
a  violation  of  the  treaty  he  had  entered  into  with 
them.  Therefore  some  opposition  and  even  danger 
might  be  anticipated  in  his  province. 

The  missionaries  decided  that,  as  a  first  step,  they 
would  commence  their  operations  in  Tamatave.  Mr. 
Bragg  invited  them  to  his  extensive  residence,  about 
a  mile  out  of  the  city,  and  after  reconnoitring  a  few 
days,  they  began  to  take  steps  towards  the  establish- 
ment of  a  mission.  They  visited  Fisatra,  the  chief  of 
a  neighbouring  village  called  Hivondrona,  who  gave 
them  a  cordial  welcome,  and  promised  to  place  his  son 


INTRODUCTION    OF   CHRISTIANITY.  27 

under  their  tuition.  This  example  was  soon  followed 
by  many  of  the  leading  people  in  the  neighbourhood. 
Mr.  Bragg  undertook  to  erect  a  mission  house,  and 
set  about  the  work  with  such  earnestness,  that  by  the 
8th  of  September  it  was  finished,  and  a  school  opened 
in  it  with  six  children.  This  number  afterwards 
increased,  and  the  missionaries  were  greatly  pleased 
with  the  intelligence  and  docility  of  their  pupils,  as 
were  the  parents  with  the  course  of  instruction,  but 
especially  with  the  singing. 

Messrs.  Bevan  and  Jones  having  thus  as  they  hoped 
auspiciously  opened  their  work,  returned  to  Mauritius, 
leaving  their  school  in  the  care  of  Mr.  Bragg,  who, 
strange  to  say,  dismissed  the  pupils  immediately  the 
missionaries  had  left.  On  arriving  at  Mauritius,  they 
found  their  wives  enduring  much  reproach  on  account 
of  the  work  their  husbands  had  undertaken.  Mr. 
Jones  and  his  family  therefore  hastened  to  leave  for 
Madagascar,  but  Mr.  Bevan  was  detained  for  some 
time  at  St.  Louis,  the  chief  town  of  Mauritius,  by  the 
illness  of  his  wife.  When  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jones  reached 
Tamatave  on  the  19th  of  October,  they  were  saluted 
by  cries  of"  Welcome,  welcome."  They  were  gratified 
to  find,  that  notwithstanding  the  closing  of  the  school, 
the  work  was  in  progress,  for  the  children  who  had 
attended  it  were  engaged  in  imparting  their  knowledge 
to  others,  and  were  anxiously  awaiting  the  arrival  of 
the  missionaries  that  they  might  begin  again. 

Prince,  or  Chief  Rene  kindly  granted  a  piece  of 
ground  for  the  building  of  a  school-house,  and  a  com- 
mencement of  it  was  made.  But  the  season  was  very 
unhealthy,  heavy  rains  drenched  the  ground,  the 
house  built  by  Mr.  Bragg  was  damp,  and  the  result  was 


28      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

that  the  whole  missionary  household  were  laid  low  with 
the  terrible  Malagasy  fever.  On  the  1 3th  of  December, 
the  infant  daughter  of  Mr.  Jones  died  ;  on  the  29th  his 
wife  also  was  taken  from  him,  and  he  was  so  ill  that 
he  was  not  expected  to  survive.  Early  in  January, 
Mr.  Bevan  with  his  wife  and  infant  arrived  at 
Tamatave.  On  landing  he  was  told  abruptly  of  the 
deaths  of  Mrs.  Jones  and  her  infant.  The  tidings 
greatly  affected  him,  and  he  stood  before  the  house 
where  Mr.  Jones  lay  apparently  dying  and  wept 
bitterly. 

From  that  moment  he  was  possessed  with  a  pre- 
sentiment that  he  should  fall  a  victim  to  the  devouring 
pestilence.  Before  the  month  of  January  closed  he 
and  his  little  child  were  filling  one  grave,  and  in  the 
following  month  his  pious,  sorrowing  wife  went  to  join 
them  in  their  heavenly  home.  Before  Mr.  Bevan 
passed  away  he  said  to  Mr.  Jones,  "  I  shall  certainly 
die,  but  you  will  recover  and  proceed  with  your  work, 
and  ultimately  succeed  in  the  Mission,"  The  spirit  of 
prophecy  was  upon  him  in  the  utterance  of  these 
words,  as  none  could  have  been  more  happily  ful- 
filled. 

Mr.  Jones  was  now  the  only  member  of  the  Mission 
party  remaining,  and  the  circumstances  in  which  he 
was  left  were  sufficiently  mournful.  But  they  were 
rendered  more  aggravating  by  the  singular  conduct 
of  Mr.  Bragg.  He  turned  against  Mr.  Jones  and  the 
Mission  without  any  ostensible  reason,  and  heaped 
upon  him  every  form  of  insult  and  ridicule.  As  a 
result  of  his  conduct,  the  property  of  the  Mission  was, 
stolen,  and  parties  came  into  the  house  scoffing  at  the 
calamities   which   had    befallen    the    missionary,  and 


INTRODUCTION   OF   CHRISTIANITY.  29 

eating  up  his  provisions.  The  helpless  invalid  bore 
up  bravely  under  these  trials,  and  when  his  strength 
was  sufficiently  recruited  he  crawled  to  Tamatave, 
where  he  begged  from  a  friendly  native  a  shelter  from 
the  persecution  of  Mr,  Bragg.  But  his  retreat  was 
discovered,  and  Mr.  Bragg  followed  him  to  it,  had 
him  conveyed  back  to  his  house  by  force,  and  syste- 
matically illtreated  him,  until  frequent  relapses  of 
fever  and  prolonged  unkindness  so  reduced  his  strength 
as  to  render  recovery  in  Madagascar  impossible. 
Therefore,  he  sailed  for  Mauritius  on  the  3rd  of  July, 
receiving  much  kindness  from  the  chief  Fisatra,  and 
many  good  wishes  from  friendly  natives. 

Mr.  Jones  stayed  in  Mauritius  fourteen  months. 
He  had  careful  medical  attendance,  and  received 
great  help  from  an  English  resident,  who  afforded  him 
assistance  in  studying  the  Malagasy  language.  Mr. 
Jones  meantime  repaid  the  kindness  by  collecting 
seventy  children  on  the  gentleman's  estate  and  teach- 
ing them. 

During  his  absence,  events  were  moving  swiftly  in 
Madagascar.  A  Frenchman  landed  at  Tamatave, 
and  making  his  way  to  the  capital,  presented  hand- 
some gifts  to  Radama,  urging  him  to  allow  the  French 
to  open  out  their  former  trade.  Sir  Robert  Farquhar 
was  absent  from  Mauritius  at  the  time,  having  gone 
on  a  visit  to  England,  and  a  weak  and  foolish  man, 
General  Hall,  was  invested  with  authority  in  his 
absence.  This  man  sent  back  to  Radama  the  youths 
who  had  come  to  Mauritius  to  be  trained  and  educated, 
thereby  giving  deep  offence  to  Radama,  and  leading 
him  to  permit  the  recommencement  of  the  slave  trade 
which  Sir  Robert  had  striven  so  earnestly  to  suppress. 


30      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

When  Sir  Robert  returned  to  his  post  in  July,  1820, 
he  took  early  steps  to  renew  the  treaty  with  Radama 
for  the  complete  suppression  of  the  slave  trade  and  of 
slavery.  The  king  was  vigorously  pursuing  his  policy 
of  conquest,  and  had  forced  several  powerful  tribes, 
among  which  were  the  Sakalavas,  into  submission, 
when  Mr.  Jones,  accompanied  by  Mr.  James  Hastie, 
the  English  envoy  appointed  by  Sir  Robert  Farquhar 
to  negotiate  the  treaty,  arrived  at  the  port  of  Tamatave. 
They  quickly  set  out  for  Antananarivo,  and  arrived 
there  early  in  October.  Mr.  Hastie  was  received  by 
Radama  with  great  state  and  pomp,  and  on  Mr.  Jones 
being  introduced  he  was  greeted  with  a  cordial 
welcome.  In  a  few  days  a  new  treaty  was  prepared 
and  concluded  between  the  king  and  the  English 
Government  for  the  suppression  of  the  shameful  slave 
traffic,  and  on  its  ratification  the  English  flag  was 
hoisted  on  the  royal  palace,  and  a  royal  salute  fired. 
Radama  also  assured  Mr.  Jones  that  he  might  remain 
in  the  capital,  and  that  any  other  missionaries  who  came 
to  help  him  would  receive  protection.  Mr.  Hastie 
greatly  rejoiced  in  the  auspicious  consummation  of 
his  mission.  He  said  in  his  despatch  announcing  the 
news :  "  I  declare  the  first  peal  of  Radama's  cannon 
announcing  the  amity  sealed  rejoiced  my  heart  more 
than  the  gift  of  thousands  would  have  done." 

On  the  8th  of  December,  1820,  Mr.  Jones  commenced 
his  work  by  opening  a  school  in  the  capital.  He  began 
with  three  pupils  but  next  day  more  were  added,  and 
daily  he  had  fresh  recruits.  Then  arrangements  were 
made  to  build  a  residence  for  the  missionary,  and  the 
king  himself  laid  the  foundation  of  it  and  sprinkled 
it  with  sacred  water — a  rite  of  lono;  standing  in  the 


31 


INTRODUCTION    OF   CHRISTIANITY.  33 

country.  This  office  Radama  fulfilled  that  he  might 
offer  his  token  of  respect  for  the  work  of  the  mission- 
ary and  rebuke  any  prejudice  the  people  might  have 
concerning  it. 

In  the  middle  of  May,  1821,  Rev.  David  Griffiths 
who  had  been  sent  out  by  the  London  Missionary 
Society  to  assist  in  the  work,  arrived  at  Tamatave, 
accompanied  by  a  small  band  of  European  artisans. 
They  at  once  set  out  for  Antananarivo  escorted  by 
Mr.  Hastie,  and  were  cheered  by  several  messages  of 
welcome  from  the  king  on  their  journey.  On  their 
arrival  they  were  received  by  him  with  every  token 
of  respect.  Mr.  Griffiths  took  up  his  abode  in  the 
mission-house  with  Mr.  Jones.  There  were  twenty- 
two  pupils  in  the  school,  all  selected  from  the  families 
of  the  king  and  his  nobility.  Several  had  learned 
to  read  the  Bible  and  had  made  satisfactory  progress 
in  several  branches  of  knowledge.  Radama  was 
delighted  with  their  singing  and  used  often  to  come 
into  the  school  to  listen  to  them.  He  frequently 
announced  the  hymn  to  be  sung.  He  gave  orders 
that  this  should  be  called  "  The  Royal  School." 

After  due  consideration  it  was  resolved  that  Mr. 
Griffiths  should  take  charge  of  the  school  while  Mr. 
Jones  paid  a  visit  to  the  Isle  of  France  for  the  benefit 
of  his  health,  and  that  he  should  afterwards  commence 
another  school  for  the  children  of  the  people.  It  was 
agreed  with  Radama,  who  carefully  discussed  every 
point,  that  on  the  arrival  of  Mrs.  Griffiths,  who  was 
expected  soon,  the  girls  should  be  instructed  in 
needlework  and  other  useful  household  attainments. 
In  August,  Mr,  Griffith  went  to  Tamatave  to  meet 
his    wife   and   escort  her  to  the  capital.      The  king 

C 


34      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

showed  him  abounding  kindness  in  preparing  for  the 
journey,  one  of  Radama's  sisters  sent  her  servants  to 
carry  his  provisions,  and  a  few  of  the  pupils  went  with 
him  for  some  miles  of  the  way. 

When  Mr.  Griffith  started,  the  king  had  gone  from 
the  capital  on  a  warlike  expedition,  but  the  mission- 
ary left  a  letter  for  him  expressing  his  fervent 
gratitude  for  the  friendly  attentions  he  had  rendered, 
and  begging  him  to  make  further  provision  for  the 
Mission  in  the  erection  of  schools  and  houses.  To 
this  letter  Radama  sent  a  gracious  reply  promising 
all  that  was  desired. 

On  the  loth  of  October  the  missionary  party,  consist- 
ing of  Mr.  Jones  and  his  recently  married  wife,  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Griffith  and  their  infant  child,  Mr.  Barnsley, 
assistant  agent,  and  another,  arrived  at  Antananarivo. 
Mr.  Hastie  came  to  meet  them,  bearing  a  letter  of 
welcome  from  the  king.  Twelve  of  the  royal 
servants  also  met  them  carrying  refreshments.  Mr. 
Hastie  took  the  infant  and  carried  it,  saying,  "  I  shall 
take  the  first  white  child  into  the  capital  of  Mada- 
gascar." The  party  proceeded  to  the  palace  amidst 
crowds  of  spectators  and  shouts  of  welcome.  As  they 
entered  the  courtyard,  the  king,  his  mother,  and 
sister,  cordially  received  them. 

Next  day  the  king  presented  a  site  for  a  new 
mission-house.  The  people  at  once  set  to  work  to 
level  the  ground  and  prepare  for  building.  Then  Mr. 
Griffiths  commenced  his  school.  He  chose  eleven 
boys  and  four  girls  from  the  chief  families  in  the  city. 
These  were  all  clothed  lightly  as  Europeans,  and 
their  education  proceeded  apace. 

Mr.  Jones,  although  suffering  from  a  relapse  of  fever, 


INTRODUCTION   OF   CHRISTIANITY.  35 

reopened  his  school  in  the  presence  of  Radama,  who 
sat  during  the  examination  of  the  children  in  all  the  sub- 
jects which  they  had  been  taught,  and  then  expressed 
himself  as  being  delighted  with  the  progress  they  had 
made.  The  missionaries  were  also  greatly  cheered  by 
the  kindness  of  Sir  R.  Farquhar  who  arranged  that 
the  whole  expense  of  the  missionaries'  journey  from 
Mauritius  to  the  capital  should  be  borne  by  the 
English  Government  and  who  also  authorised  Mr. 
Jones  to  draw  thirty  dollars  per  month  for  the  sup- 
port of  the  schools  which  had  been  opened. 

In  accordance  with  an  ancient  custom  in  the 
island,  of  presenting  the  king  with  the  first-fruits  of 
the  field,  Mrs.  Griffith,  on  the  21st  of  December,  1821, 
presented  Radama  with  the  first  piece  of  needlework 
which  her  pupils  had  completed.  He  expressed  great 
gratification  with  it  and  in  return  gave  each  of  the 
girls  a  piece  of  money. 

Mr.  Hastie  being  about  to  return  to  Mauritius, 
Radama  arranged  for  twenty  carefully  selected  youths 
to  proceed  for  education,  ten  to  Mauritius,  and  ten 
to  England.  Prince  Ratefy,  brother-in-law  to  the 
king,  was  going  to  England  as  ambassador,  and 
the  youths  intended  for  this  country  accompanied 
him.  On  their  arrival,  they  were  placed  under  the 
care  of  the  London  Missionary  Society.  Radama 
had  also  sent  by  Ratefy  an  earnest  request  that  the 
Society  would  send  out  more  missionaries,  but 
especially  more  artisans  and  artificers  to  teach  in 
Madagascar  the  useful  arts  of  western  civilisation. 
Accordingly  the  Rev.  J.  Jeffreys  and  his  wife,  with 
four  skilled  workmen,  returned  with  the  Prince  when 
his  mission  in  England  was  concluded. 


36      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

On  the  loth  of  June  the  Mission  party,  with  Mr. 
Hastieand  two  German  botanists  who  had  joined  it  at 
Mauritius,  arrived  at  the  capital  and  were  received 
with  great  kindness  and  courtesy.  The  king  granted 
a  good  house  in  a  large  enclosure  for  the  residence 
of  Mr.  Jeffreys  and  gave  a  piece  of  land  where  the 
artisans  might  establish  themselves  and  carry  out 
their  handicrafts.  A  servant  was  apportioned  to 
each  of  them,  on  condition  that  eight  youths  were 
properly  instructed  by  them  in  their  arts.  The 
German  botanists  were  placed  in  charge  of  the 
king's  garden,  having  ten  men  and  two  boys  under 
them  with  orders  to  utilise  any  piece  of  ground  they 
might  choose  in  cultivating  plants  and  seeds  of 
foreign  and  home  growth. 

Very  soon  a  third  school  was  opened  with  twelve 
pupils,  under  the  care  of  Mr.  Jeffreys,  but  in  the  midst 
of  so  much  to  encourage,  the  Mission  band  was 
saddened  by  the  sudden  death  of  Mr.  Brooks,  one  of 
the  artisans,  ten  days  after  his  arrival  at  Antananarivo. 
He  was  buried  in  a  grave  granted  by  the  king,  who 
also  gave  permission  for  the  ground  surrounding  it  for 
a  considerable  distance  to  be  walled  in,  and  which 
became  the  general  burial-place  for  the  Christians  of 
the  capital. 

The  work  of  the  missionaries  entailed  other  anxieties. 
Jealousies  were  aroused  in  the  minds  of  some  of  the 
people  as  to  the  object  of  the  education  of  the  young, 
and  rumours  were  circulated  that  the  white  men 
intended  to  kidnap  the  children  and  carry  them  away 
to  their  own  land.  Some  parents  to  preserve  their 
children  from  going  to  the  Mission  schools  hid  them 
in  rice  holes,  and  several  of  them  died  of  suffocation 


INTRODUCTION   OF   CHRISTIANITY.  37 

in  these  underground  store-rooms.  During  this  crisis 
Radama  was  absent  prosecuting  a  war  in  the  Sakalava 
province,  but  his  mother,  who  was  a  woman  of  great 
spirit,  had  it  announced  that  all  who  published  false 
reports  of  the  missionaries,  or  who  used  methods  of 
concealing  their  children  so  as  to  cause  them  to  die, 
should  be  put  to  death.  Thus  an  end  was  promptly 
made  of  these  groundless  rumours  and  of  the  ill-treat- 
ment of  the  children. 

In  July,  1822,  the  people  brought  in  quantities  of 
timber  from  the  forest,  and  set  to  work  on  the  erection 
of  the  house  for  Mr.  Griffiths  and  the  premises  for 
church  and  school  purposes.  This  was  the  largest 
building  ever  put  up  in  the  capital,  and  it  excited 
great  wonder  and  interest  among  the  people. 

In  September,  the  members  of  the  Mission  formed 
themselves  into  a  church.  They  adopted  the  Congre- 
gational pattern,  but  they  arranged  a  basis  of  church 
membership  of  so  broad  a  character  as  to  comprehend 
Christians  of  every  creed  who  might  come  to  reside 
in  the  country.  Then  for  the  first  time  the  Lord's 
Supper  was  observed  among  them. 

As  the  work  of  the  Mission  assumed  greater 
magnitude,  the  missionaries  felt  increasingly  the  need 
of  becoming  acquainted  with  the  language  of  the 
country.  They  had  begun  by  teaching  their  pupils 
English,  and  had  succeeded  so  well  that  in  1822  the 
scholars  were  able  in  the  presence  of  the  king  and  his 
court  to  read  the  seventh  chapter  of  the  Acts  of  the 
Apostles  in  English,  and  then  to  translate  it  into  Mala- 
gasy. From  their  pupils  the  missionaries  were  learning 
sounds  and  names  of  the  native  language,  but  their 
means  of  acquiring  any  knowledge  were  simply  oral. 


38       MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

As  already  stated,  no  alphabet,  grammar  or  dictionary 
of  Malagasy  was  in  existence.  They  had  therefore  the 
difificult  work  of  learning,  constructing  and  teaching  the 
language  at  the  same  time.  Very  heroically  did  they 
struggle  with  the  difficulty.  They  used  the  English 
letters  as  far  as  possible  to  express  the  native  sounds, 
they  gave  the  French  pronunciation  to  the  vowels,  and 
they  adopted  Arabic  numerals.  In  this  formation  of 
a  written  language  for  his  nation  the  king  took  the 
deepest  interest.  He  was  learning  both  the  English 
and  French  languages  himself,  and  to  simplify  matters 
for  his  people  he  issued  an  order  that  no  vowel  was  to 
have  more  than  one  sound.  In  two  years'  time,  the 
missionaries  succeeded  in  fixing  the  Malagasy  alpha- 
bet, which  has  continued  in  use  by  both  natives  and 
foreigners  to  the  present  time. 

In  1823  an  adult  school  was  formed  in  the  court- 
yard of  the  royal  palace,  which  was  attended  by  three 
hundred  officers  of  the  army  and  their  wives.  Radama 
was  moved  to  establish  this  school  by  hearing  it  said 
that  there  was  no  nation  which  could  not  read  or  write 
except  the  Malagasy  and  the  Mozambiques.  He 
replied,  "  Then  I  would  rather  not  be  a  king  at  all 
than  be  king  of  such  a  people."  From  this  time  he 
devoted  himself  more  than  ever  to  promulgate  means 
for  having  his  people  instructed.  Towards  the  end  of 
the  year  the  missionaries  arranged  for  the  establish- 
ment of  schools  in  districts  away  from  the  capital,  and 
some  of  the  most  advanced  of  their  pupils  were  placed 
in  charge  of  them. 

The  new  mission  buildings  were  completed  in 
December,  and  Divine  service  was  held  in  them  on 
the  last  Sunday  of  the  year.     The  natives  showed  a 


INTRODUCTION   OF   CHRISTIANITY.  39 

great  reluctance  in  attending  the  public  preaching  qf 
the  Word  of  God.  The  missionaries  had  their  faith 
severely  tried  in  witnessing,  notwithstanding  all  their 
success  in  education  and  in  diffusing  a  knowledge 
of  useful  arts,  how  the  people  clung  to  their  old 
superstitions  and  showed  utter  indifference  to  Divine 
truth.  Some  were  angry  that  the  national  idols  should 
be  slighted,  while  others  stood  in  awe  of  the  diviners 
and  sorcerers,  but  Radama  shook  himself  free  from 
idolatry  in  a  remarkable  manner.  When  the  people 
of  a  certain  village  asked  him  for  a  piece  of  scarlet 
cloth  for  their  idol,  he  said  :  "  Surely  he  must  be  very 
poor  if  he  cannot  obtain  a  piece  of  cloth  for  himself. 
If  he  be  a  god  he  can  provide  his  own  garments." 

Since  schools  had  been  opened  in  the  country  dis- 
tricts the  missionaries  divided  the  Sundays  between 
visiting  them  and  preaching  in  the  large  hall  or 
chapel  recently  opened,  and  they  were  greatly  cheered 
by  the  increasing  numbers  who  were  drawn  to  listen 
to  their  addresses.  At  times  more  than  a  thousand 
were  assembled,  and  members  of  the  royal  family 
were  generally  among  them.  The  singing  of  the 
pupils  was  a  great  attraction  in  the  services.  The 
Malagasy  are  a  musical  people,  and  the  missionaries 
had  taken  great  pains  to  train  the  scholars  in  singing. 
The  hymns  thus  taught  were  constantly  heard  in  the 
homes,  the  streets,  the  fields,  and  indeed  everywhere. 

The  officer  left  in  charge  of  the  capital  when 
Radama  was  absent  on  his  warlike  expeditions  took 
deep  interest  in  the  progress  of  the  Mission  work,  and 
especially  in  the  schools.  He  attended  the  public 
examination  of  the  scholars  in  1S28,  when  the  one 
small    school    commenced    in   Mr.   Jones'  room  with 


40      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

three  scholars  had  increased  to  thirty-two  schools 
with  four  thousand  young  people.  The  governor 
addressed  the  assembly  on  this  occasion,  reminding 
his  countrymen  of  the  great  obligations  they  were 
under  to  the  white   men,  and    urging   on    both   old 


MALAGASY   MUSICAL   INSTRUMENTS. 


and  young  the  duty  of  encouraging  them  in  their  work. 
A  great  trial  befell  the  Mission  in  1825  in  the  death 
of  Rev.  J.  Jeffreys.  He  had  been  in  the  island  three 
years,  and  had  passed  the  last  year  at  Ambatomanga, 
having  charge  of  a  school  there  and  visiting  the  dis- 
trict around  to  make  known  the  Gospel.    Mrs.  Jeffreys 


INTRODUCTION    OF   CHRISTIANITY.  4I 

was  taken  ill,  and  it  was  deemed  necessary  to  remove 
her  to  Mauritius,  and  in  June  Mr.  Jeffreys  sailed  for 
Tamatave  with  her  and  his  children.  On  the  voyage 
he  and  his  eldest  daughter  were  seized  with  alarming 
symptoms,  which  speedily  became  aggravated.  The 
child  died  in  the  arms  of  a  sick  mother  when  the 
father  was  too  ill  to  be  told  of  her  danger,  and  in  a 
few  days  the  father  followed  the  child,  using  his  last 
breath  in  imparting  comfort  to  his  afflicted  partner. 
Mrs.  Jeffreys  reached  Mauritius,  and  after  staying 
there  six  weeks  sailed  for  England. 

Immediately  on  hearing  of  the  death  of  Mr.  Jeffreys 
the  London  Missionary  Society  sent  out  Rev.  David 
Johns  to  succeed  him.  He  arrived  at  Antananarivo 
in  due  time,  having  with  him  his  wife,  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Cameron,  and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Cummins,  and  Raolom- 
belona,  one  of  the  youths  sent  to  England  by  Radama, 
who  had  been  taught  the  art  of  spinning  and  dyeing 
cotton  at  Manchester.  Several  of  these  youths  had 
previously  returned  to  Madagascar,  and  were  busily 
engaged  with  the  artisans  in  practising  and  teaching 
the  industrial  arts,  and  two  of  them  still  remained  in 
England. 

Another  severe  trial  to  the  Mission  came  in  the 
sudden  death  of  the  English  Ambassador,  Mr.  James 
Hastie.  This  excellent  man  had  been  a  firm  friend  and 
useful  helper  of  the  missionaries  from  their  entrance 
into  the  island.  He  had  experienced  a  succession  of 
accidents  which  reduced  his  strength,  and  which  brought 
on  an  attack  of  Malagasy  fever  accompanied  by  in- 
flammation. He  died  on  the  8th  of  October,  to  the 
deep  regret  of  the  king,  who  said :  "  I  have  lost  many 
of  my  people,  many  of  my  soldiers,  most  of  my  officers, 


42      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

and  several  of  my  highest  nobles,  but  all  is  nothing  in 
comparison  with  this,"  and  to  the  great  distress  of  the 
missionaries,  who  mourned  the  loss  of  a  true  friend 
and  wise  counsellor.  He  had  introduced  them  to  the 
capital  and  to  the  king,  he  had  succeeded  by  his  dis- 
creet conduct  in  abolishing  the  slave  trade,  and  he 
had  done  much  to  aid  in  the  spread  of  civilisation, 
and  the  establishment  of  Christianity  in  the  island. 

On  the  20th  of  October,  1826,  his  corpse  was 
taken  to  the  chapel,  and  a  funeral  service  conducted 
by  the  Rev.  D.  Griffiths.  Then  the  king  and  all  the 
royal  family,  the  judges,  officers.  Mission  agents  and 
others  proceeded  to  the  burial-ground,  and  the  body 
was  consigned  to  its  resting-place  by  Rev.  D.  Jones. 

When  Radama  returned  from  his  wars,  and  was 
told  of  the  troubles  which  had  arisen  concerning  the 
children  attending  the  schools,  referred  to  in  a  previous 
page,  he  desired  the  missionaries  not  to  move  so  fast, 
or  they  might  endanger  the  peace  and  safety  of  his 
kingdom.  When  this  became  known  the  attendance 
of  the  children  for  a  time  fell  off.  In  this  difficulty 
the  missionaries  had  recourse  to  prayer,  and  instituted 
meetings  for  this  purpose  to  which  many  of  the 
scholars  came.  These  meetings  spread  to  the  country 
districts,  and  soon  many  of  the  young  natives  were 
heard  simply  and  earnestly  seeking  the  Divine  bless- 
ing on  their  countrymen.  The  hearts  of  the  mis- 
sionaries were  inspired  with  new  courage,  and  the 
meetings  became  a  happy  training  ground  for  spiritual 
exercises  which  bore  fruit  in  later  days. 

A  great  forward  step  was  taken  in  the  operations 
of  the  Mission  in  1826  by  the  introduction  of  a  print- 
ing press,  the  first  ever  seen  in  the  island.     The  king 


INTRODUCTION    OF   CHRISTIANITY.  43 

was  delighted  to  have  it  at  work  in  his  capital,  and 
set  six  youths  apart  to  learn  the  art  of  printing.  The 
press  was  brought  out  by  a  skilled  printer,  but  two 
days  after  his  arrival  he  was  seized  with  the  cruel 
fever  of  the  country,  and  to  the  sorrow  of  the  Christian 
band,  after  a  short  illness,  he  died. 

The  next  year  the  Rev.  J.  J.  Freeman  came  out  to 
help  in  the  work,  accompanied  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Canham. 
Radama  was  at  Tamatave  when  they  arrived  and  went 
to  the  shore  to  meet  and  welcome  them.  The  mission- 
aries, although  they  knew  nothing  of  the  working  of  a 
printing  press  by  experience,  resolved  to  attempt  to 
issue  a  series  of  small  guide  books,  and  they  succeeded 
so  far  beyond  their  expectation  as  to  be  encouraged 
to  proceed  to  print  books  of  greater  bulk.  A  large 
portion  of  the  Bible  had  been  rendered  in  Malagasy 
by  Messrs.  Jones  and  Griffith,  and  they  now  set  about  a 
careful  revision  of  their  work  preparatory  to  printing  it. 
On  the  1st  of  January,  1828,  they  passed  through  the 
press  the  first  sheet  of  the  Gospel  of  St.  Luke,  desir- 
ing, as  they  said :  "  To  hallow  the  new  year  of  our 
missionary  labours  by  this  service  in  opening  the 
fountain  of  living  waters  in  the  midst  of  this  parched 
ground,  and  with  prayer  that  the  healing  streams 
may  transform  the  wilderness  into  the  garden  of  the 
Lord." 

Up  to  this  time  the  missionaries  had  not  been 
cheered  by  any  clear  evidences  of  conversion  to  God, 
or  any  application  for  baptism  by  the  natives.  There 
were  signs  now  apparent  that  some  of  their  pupils 
and  hearers  were  becoming  ripe  for  making  a  public 
confession  of  faith  in  Christ.  Before  such  a  step 
could  be  taken  it  was  deemed  advisable  to  obtain  the 


44      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

sanction  of  Radama,  and  Mr.  Jones  fully  explained 
to  him  the  nature  of  the  ordinance.  Soon  afterwards 
he  sent  a  message  to  the  effect  that  he  desired  those 
whose  time  in  the  schools  had  expired  to  continue 
under  instruction  and  to  attend  the  services  for 
worship,  intimating  also  that  as  to  being  married  or 
baptised,  it  was  left  to  each  person  to  judge  and  act 
for  himself. 

In  order  to  further  instruct  those  who  had  left  the 
schools,  and  to  fit  those  who  were  teaching  in  the 
villages  for  their  work,  an  advanced  course  of  lectures 
on  the  doctrines  of  the  Bible  was  given  by  the 
missionaries  in  the  head  school  of  Antananarivo,  and 
earnest  care  was  taken  in  delivering  the  addresses 
to  impress  the  consciences  of  the  hearers  with  the 
practical  bearings  of  the  great  truths  expounded. 

In  1828  a  deputation  from  the  London  Missionary 
Society,  consisting  of  Rev.  D.  Tyerman  and  G.  Bennet, 
Esq.,  arrived  at  Tamatave.  They  had  been  on  a 
missionary  tour  of  inspection  to  the  South  Sea 
Islands,  and  other  parts  of  the  world,  and  now  came 
to  view  the  work  of  God  in  Madagascar.  Mr.  Jones 
went  to  Tamatave  to  meet  and  conduct  them  over 
the  long  journey  of  three  hundred  miles  up  the 
country.  They  were  met  by  Mr.  Freeman  and  other 
members  of  the  Mission  at  Ambodinangavo,  and  so 
attended  entered  the  capital.  They  had  only  time  to 
take  a  brief  survey  of  the  operations  of  the  mission- 
aries when  death  struck  Mr,  Tyerman,  and  amidst 
much  grief  and  disappointment  his  body  was  laid  to 
rest  in  the  Christian  burial-ground. 

But  a  far  sadder  event  was  about  to  occur  which 
was  full  of  eventful  consequences  to  the  nation,  and 


INTRODUCTION   OF   CHRISTIANITY.  45 

especially  to  the  future  of  Christianity  in  the  country. 
The  health  of  Radama  had  been  rapidly  failing  for 
about  a  year.  His  constitution  had  never  been  robust, 
although  his  temperament  was  restless  and  vigorous. 
His  strength  had  been  exhausted,  partly  by  camp  life 
and  attacks  of  fever,  but  more  still  by  intemperance 
and  indulgence  in  sensual  vices.  For  several  months 
before  his  end  he  scarcely  was  able  to  transact  public 
business,  and  was  only  seen  by  a  few  intimate  attend- 
ants and  friends.  He  died  on  the  27th  of  June,  1828,  at 
the  early  age  of  thirty-six  years.  Two  days  before  he 
passed  away  Mr.  Jones  saw  him  but  he  was  so 
exhausted  that  the  few  words  he  muttered  could  not 
be  understood. 

Madagascar  never  had  a  prince  equal  to  him  in 
all  respects,  and  no  one  ever  did  so  much  toward 
the  improvement  of  the  people  and  the  country. 
By  his  conquests  in  war  he  brought  most  of  the 
Malagasy  tribes  into  subjection  to  himself  By  his 
alliances  with  western  nations  he  gave  much  encourage- 
ment to  commerce  and  to  the  growth  of  the  people 
in  civilisation,  and  although  he  never  became  a 
Christian,  he  had  throughout  been  a  warm  friend  to 
the  missionaries,  and  to  the  establishment  of  Christi- 
anity. His  suppression  of  the  slave  trade,  his  adoption 
of  a  system  of  education,  his  introduction  of  useful 
industries  and  arts,  the  reduction  of  the  Malagasy 
language  to  writing,  and  the  introduction  of  printing, 
but  especially  the  proclamation  of  the  Gospel  in  the 
island,  all  make  his  reign  one  of  unsurpassed  import- 
ance to  the  nation. 

The  way  in  which  he  shook  off  the  superstitions 
of  witchcraft  and  idolatry  and  laboured  to  destroy 


46      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

heathendom  showed  him  to  be  a  man  of  great 
breadth  of  mind,  and  had  he  been  as  virtuous  as 
he  was  able,  his  Hfe  might  have  been  prolonged,  and 
become  an  unspeakable  blessing  to  the  people. 

That  such  a  man  should  be  struck  down  at  a  time 
when  his  presence  seemed  to  be  imperatively  needful 
for  the  completion  of  reforms  he  had  initiated  and 
measures  he  was  planning,  seemed  to  be  a  mysterious 
dispensation  of  Providence,  and  the  Mission  was  now 
to  enter  upon  a  chequered  history  of  repression  and 
persecution,  and  then  upon  a  course  of  triumphant 
success. 


CHAPTER  III. 


THE   GOSPEL  ROOTING   ITSELF — GATHERING   STORM. 

"  Oh  !  let  all  the  soul  within  you,  for  the  truth's  sake  go  abroad  ! 
Strike  !  let  every  nerve  and  sinew  tell  on  ages — tell  for  God. 
Sealed  to  blush,  to  waver,  never  ;  crossed,  baptised,  and  born 

again. 
Sworn  to  be  Christ's  soldiers  ever,  Oh,  for  Christ  at  least  be 

men."  .  A.  C.  Coxe. 

THE  friends  who  attended  Radama  in  his  last 
moments  were  bewildered  by  his  death,  and  in 
their  suspense  resolved  to  keep  the  event  secret 
until  they  had  duly  decided  on  the  course  of 
conduct  they  ought  to  adopt.  The  royal  band  there- 
fore played  each  afternoon  in  the  palace-yard,  and 
announcements  were  made  that  the  king  was  improv- 
ing. This  deceitful  policy  was  fraught  with  danger, 
and  produced  great  mischief  to  the  State,  Radama 
had  no  son  living,  and  had  adopted  as  his  successor 
Rakatobe  the  son  of  Prince  Ratefy.  He  was  an  amiable 
and  intelligent  youth.  He  was  the  first  scholar  who 
entered  the  Mission  School  eight  years  before,  and 
was  a  warm  friend  to  the  missionaries.  Indeed,  he 
left  ground  for  believing  that  he  had  been  really  con- 

47 


48      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

verted  by  the  grace  of  God,  and  become  a  believer  in 
Jesus  Christ. 

Instead  of  at  once  proclaiming  Rakatobe  king, 
his  friends  dallied  and  delayed  until  it  was  too  late. 
A  young  officer  who  was  in  the  secret  informed 
Ranavalona,  one  of  Radama's  wives,  of  the  true 
state  of  affairs.  She  was  by  no  means  a  favourite 
with  the  king,  but  she  was  a  bold  and  ambitious 
woman.  She  sent  for  two  officers  who  were  devoted 
to  her  interests,  and  promised  them  high  promotion 
in  the  army  if  they  would  conspire  to  make  her  queen. 
This  could  only  be  done  by  much  bloodshed,  indeed, 
by  the  complete  cutting-off  of  Radama's  relations. 
She  thought  nothing  of  this,  but  was  quite  willing  to 
"  wade  through  slaughter  to  a  throne."  The  officers 
who  espoused  her  cause  won  over  to  her  interests  a 
number  of  officials  and  a  portion  of  the  troops.  The 
young  Prince  Rakatobe  was  seized  in  the  middle  of  a 
certain  night  by  Ranavalona's  emissaries  and  carried 
out  to  a  considerable  distance  from  the  capital. 
There  he  was  placed  on  the  brink  of  a  newly  prepared 
grave.  He  pleaded  for  a  few  moments'  respite,  which 
his  murderers  reluctantly  granted.  These  were  spent 
in  fervent  prayer  to  God,  and  then  he  was  ruthlessly 
speared,  and  his  body  buried  in  the  earth. 

The  measures  of  Ranavalona  were  taken  with  com- 
bined caution  and  promptitude.  Like  Athaliah  of 
old,  she  "  rose  up  and  destroyed  all  the  seed  royal." 
On  the  1st  of  August,  the  troops  pledged  to  her  service 
were  marched  into  the  palace-yard.  The  priests  and 
supporters  of  idolatry  were  already  gathered  there. 
An  announcement  was  then  made  that  "the  idols" 
had  named  Ranavalona  as  the  proper  occupant  of  the 


GOSPEL   ROOTING   ITSELF — GATHERING   STORM.      49 

throne,  and  allegiance  was  commanded  to  be  offered 
to  her.  Some  of  Radama's  adherents  boldly  spoke 
out  and  declared  that  Rakatobe,  the  late  king's 
nephew,  and  after  him  Rakataka  his  daughter  should 
fill  the  throne,  but  while  they  yet  spoke  a  signal  was 
given  and  they  were  speared  by  the  soldiery.  After 
this  no  further  opposition  was  heard.  Ranavalona 
was  declared  queen,  and  the  welkin  rang  with  the  roar 
of  cannon  and  the  shouts  of  the  people. 

After  this  there  came  the  shameful  murder  of  Prince 
Ratefy  and  his  amiable  wife,  of  Radama's  brothers 
and  uncle,  and  of  all  his  early  and  faithful  companions. 
His  mother  also  was  sent  to  prison  and  starved  to 
death,  A  period  of  mourning  was  ordained  for  the 
late  king,  and  all  amusements  were  forbidden.  As  the 
new  Government  considered  the  teaching  in  the  mission  . 
schools  and  all  mission  work  to  belong  to  this  category, 
the  missionaries  devoted  themselves  diligently  to  the 
translation  of  the  New  Testament,  and  the  composition 
of  books  of  a  simple  character  on  several  useful  subjects. 
A  competent  printer  had  been  sent  out  from  England 
to  replace  the  first  who  had  died,  and  the  Govern- 
ment permitted  a  number  of  youths  to  be  employed 
in  copying  manuscripts  and  in  working  the  press. 

Six  months  after  Radama's  death,  the  Government 
allowed  the  mission  schools  to  be  re-opened  in  villages 
where  no  idols  were  kept,  but  seven  hundred  teachers 
and  scholars  from  these  schools  were  suddenly  drafted 
as  soldiers,  a  step  which  tended  to  confirm  the  uneasi- 
ness which  existed  in  the  minds  of  the  parents  as  to 
the  ultimate  purpose  of  educating  the  children.  Thus 
the  attendance  was  reduced  to  less  than  one-half  of  what 
it  had  previously  been.     Shortly  after  this   Mr.  Lyall, 

D 


50      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

the  English  envoy  in  succession  to  Mr.  Hastie,  was  dis- 
missed from  the  Court,  as  the  queen  announced  that 
she  did  not  hold  herself  to  be  bound  by  the  treaty 
entered  into  between  Radama  and  the  British  Govern- 


THE   queen's    palace,    ANTANANARIVO. 

ment.    She  also  declined  to  receive  the  annual  subsidy 
paid  for  compensation  for  the  loss  of  the  slav^e  trade. 

On  the  1 2th  of  June,  1829,  an  assembly  of  about 
sixty  thousand  people  was  gathered  to  witness  the 


GOSPEL   ROOTING   ITSELF — GATHERING   STORM.      5  I 

coronation  of  Ranavalona.  She  stood  upon  a  tradi- 
tional sacred  stone  while  the  ceremonial  of  consecra- 
tion was  performed.  She  took  two  of  the  national 
idols  in  her  hand,  and  said  :  "  My  predecessors  have 
given  you  to  me  ;  I  put  my  trust  in  you,  therefore 
support  me."  Then  she  gave  an  address  to  the  mul- 
titude, declaring  that  her  ancestors  had  received  the 
kingdom  by  the  authority  of  the  gods,  and  that  it  had 
come  to  Radama  on  condition  that  she  should  be  his 
successor. 

In  the  month  of  August  alarming  rumours  reached 
the  capital  that  the  French  were  meditating  a  descent 
upon  the  island,  and  in  October  six  war  vessels  came 
to  Tamatave,  and  landed  a  strong  armed  force  upon 
the  shore.  They  speedily  took  possession  of  the  town, 
and  from  thence  made  sallies  in  various  directions, 
defeating  all  opposition,  and  doing  much  damage. 
The  queen  sent  envoys  to  confer  with  the  commander, 
and  the  negotiations  were  so  prolonged  that  the  Mala- 
gasy fever  had  sufficient  time  to  accomplish  what  the 
warriors  might  not  have  done,  and  only  a  small 
remnant  who  survived  sailed  away  from  the  plague- 
haunted  coast.  Various  threats  of  a  speedy  return 
were  held  out  from  time  to  time,  but  they  were  never 
carried  into  execution. 

This  attack  on  the  part  of  the  French  aroused  the 
Government  to  the  necessity  of  strengthening  the 
defences  of  the  island.  An  appeal  was  made  to  the 
idols  for  protection  ;  old  superstitions  were  revived, 
and  diviners  became  the  chief  advisers  of  the  queen. 
All  this  boded  no  good  to  the  Christians.  The 
missionaries  were  only  allowed  to  work  within  narrow 
limits  ;  the  supporters  of  idolatry  sought   to   impede 


52      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

their  operations  in  many  ways,  and  all  encouragement 
of  education  was  withdrawn. 

Mr.  Freeman  was  so  convinced  that  no  good  could 
be  accomplished  under  existing  circumstances  that 
he  and  his  family  left  the  island  to  visit  Mauritius. 
Unfortunately,  as  they  travelled  to  the  coast,  his 
infant  son  caught  the  prevalent  fever,  and  died 
shortly  after  being  taken  on  board. 

Suddenly  a  more  friendly  disposition  was  mani- 
fested towards  the  missionaries  and  their  work.  This 
was  due  to  the  fear  inspired  by  the  late  French  inva- 
sion, and  the  expectation  of  its  renewal  ;  also  to  the 
increasing  value  of  the  English  artisans  in  diffusing  a 
knowledge  of  the  industrial  arts.  Fuller  liberty  to 
preach  and  teach  was  therefore  given,  and  the  work 
of  translating  and  printing  was  pushed  forward  with 
the  utmost  vigour.  Thus,  the  missionaries  hoped  to 
be  able  to  leaven  the  public  mind  with  Christian  sen- 
timent, and  to  prevent  much  evil  which  was  threaten- 
ing to  come  to  the  Mission. 

In  March,  1830,  it  was  the  delight  of  the  translators 
to  issue  an  edition  of  5000  copies  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment in  the  Malagasy  language.  They  had  already 
issued  1000  copies  of  various  tracts,  1500  catechisms, 
and  2000  spelling-books.  They  also  sent  out 
thousands  of  copies  of  parts  of  the  New  Testament. 
Thus  a  commencement  of  Malagasy  literature  was 
made  ;  not  by  the  wise,  the  disputer,  or  the  critic,  but 
by  the  humble  preachers  of  the  cross  of  Christ.  The 
books  were  read  by  great  numbers,  not  only  in  the 
capital,  but  in  distant  provinces  by  those  who  had 
formerly  been  mission  scholars.  No  doubt  it  was 
partly  due   to  the   reading   of  the    New  Testament 


GOSPEL   ROOTING   ITSELF — GATHERING   STORM.      53 

among  the  natives  that  the  attendance  at  Divine  wor- 
ship greatly  increased  during  this  year. 

Mr.  Jones,  the  founder  of  the  Mission,  had  suffered 
from  a  severe  iUness,  and  resolved  to  return  to  England 
to  seek  the  restoration  of  his  health.  He  had  laboured 
earnestly  for  the  establishment  of  Christianity  in  the 
island,  and  had  won  unbounded  confidence  from  his 
companions.  On  leaving  the  capital,  the  queen,  the 
Government,  multitudes  of  the  people,  and  his  fellow- 
Christians  all  vied  with  each  other  in  testifying  their 
respect  for  him.  A  salute  was  fired  as  he  left  the 
capital,  and  the  queen  allowed  him  a  guard  of  twenty 
men  to  go  with  him  to  the  coast.  He  sailed  to  Mauri- 
tius, and  thence  to  England,  where  he  arrived  on  the 
29th  of  June,  1 83 1. 

The  missionaries  rapidly  pushed  forward  the  trans- 
lation of  the  Old  Testament,  and  published  the  books 
separately  as  they  were  finished.  They  also  were 
called  upon  to  issue  new  and  enlarged  editions  of  the 
spelling-book  and  similar  hand-books.  But  they  were 
most  cheered  by  the  earnestness  manifested  by  the 
people  in  attending  the  preaching  of  the  Word.  The 
chapel  in  which  Mr.  Griffiths  ministered  was  crowded, 
and  many  could  not  get  in.  The  people  pressed  as 
inquirers  to  the  houses  of  the  missionaries,  and  many 
showed  by  their  pure  and  consistent  lives  that  a  great 
change  had  taken  place  in  them.  In  order  to  meet 
the  growing  demand  for  accommodation,  a  good  and 
convenient  chapel  was  erected  at  Ambatonakanga,  in 
the  northern  part  of  the  capital.  It  was  opened  for 
worship  on  the  5th  of  June,  183 1,  and  was  at  once  filled 
with  a  devout  congregation,  who  listened  to  the  minis- 
try of  Mr.  Johns  with  great  avidity.     The  artisans 


54      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

also  found  their  work  being  constantly  more  highly 
prized.  Mr.  Cameron,  who  was  at  the  head  of  the 
machine  shops,  had  six  hundred  youths  under  train- 
ing, and  both  he  and  his  fellow-craftsmen  laboured 
assiduously  for  the  highest  welfare  of  those  who  were 
under  their  care. 

At  last  the  faith  and  prayer  expended  on  the  Mis- 
sion for  so  many  years  were  to  be  rewarded  by  tan- 
gible results  of  the  most  blessed  kind.  Several  natives 
professed  to  be  converted,  and  desired  to  be  baptised. 
Inquiries  were  made  of  the  Government  as  to  its 
willingness  to  permit  the  rite  to  be  administered,  and 
the  queen  sent  a  message  to  the  effect  that  she  did 
not  wish  to  interfere  with  the  consent  previously  given 
by  King  Radama.  Therefore,  on  Sunday,  the  29th 
of  May,  1 83 1,  twenty  converts  were  publicly  baptised 
by  Mr.  Griffiths  before  a  deeply  impressed  audience. 
On  the  following  Sunday  eight  were  baptised  in  the 
newly  opened  chapel  by  Mr.  Johns,  six  of  whom  were 
young  men,  who  afterwards  became  preachers  and 
teachers  of  the  Gospel  to  their  countrymen. 

Petty  persecution  and  spiteful  annoyances  were 
speedily  directed  against  those  who  had  thus  pro- 
fessed Christianity,  and  contemptuous  epithets  were 
applied  to  them  by  their  heathen  neighbours.  All 
these  were  patiently  endured,  and  the  native  Christ- 
ians sought  earnestly  to  secure  the  conversion  of  their 
opponents.  With  this  end  in  view  they  held  frequent 
meetings  in  their  own  houses  for  reading  the  Bible 
and  prayer.  Through  these  and  other  efforts  the 
number  of  believers  multiplied,  and  by  the  end  of  the 
year  there  were  seventy  enrolled  in  one  church  alone, 
and  several  members  of  the  royal  family  and  Govern- 


GOSPEL   ROOTING   ITSELF — GATHERING   STORIM.      5^ 

ment  officials  professed  faith  in  Christ  and  desired  to 
be  baptised.  But  on  the  day  before  the  rite  was  to 
be  observed,  a  note  of  disapproval  was  sent  them 
from  the  queen,  and  it  was  deemed  advisable  to  defer 
the  service  for  a  time. 

During  the  reign  of  Radama,  a  law  had  been  passed 
forbidding  the  use  of  wine  or  spirituous  liquors  in 
Imerina.  It  was  not  strictly  obeyed,  but  advantage 
was  taken  of  it  by  the  heathen  party  to  harass  the 
Christians.  The  Lord's  Supper  had  been  observed 
for  the  first  time  by  the  members,  when  the  queen 
sent  a  message  that  the  law  of  the  country  forbade 
the  use  of  wine  by  natives.  The  missionaries  there- 
fore resolved  to  use  water  instead  of  wine  at  the 
ordinance.  Shortly  after  this  an  order  was  issued  by 
the  Government  forbidding  all  scholars  who  were 
receiving  instruction  by  its  authority,  and  all  soldiers 
in  the  army  to  join  the  Church  or  receive  baptism. 
Those  who  had  already  united  with  the  Church  were 
forbidden  to  receive  the  Lord's  Supper  in  future.  On 
the  next  communion  Sabbath,  the  soldiers  present  in 
the  service  abstained  from  partaking  of  the  elements, 
but  with  evident  distress  of  mind.  From  this  time  no 
Government  pupil  or  soldier  was  permitted  to  unite 
with  the  Church. 

A  forward  movement  in  the  history  of  the  Mission 
was  now  taken  by  the  organisation  of  a  Christian 
church  at  Ambodinandohalo.  A  declaration  of  faith 
of  a  catholic  character  was  agreed  upon,  the  form  of 
church  government  was  a  mixture  of  Congrega- 
tionalism and  Presbyterianism,  and  the  believers 
assembled  gave  each  other  the  right  hand  of  fellow- 
ship and  pledged  themselves  to  promote  the  spiritual 


56      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

welfare  and  interest  of  each  other  in  every  possible 
way.  The  prospect  at  this  time  was  so  bright  before 
the  missionaries  that  they  resolved  to  invite  Mr. 
Freeman,  then  labouring  at  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope, 
to  resume  his  labours  among  them.  On  the  29th  of 
August,  Mr.  Freeman  accompanied  by  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Atkinson,  who  had  been  working  on  the  African 
Mission,  arrived  at  Tamatave.  They  brought  with 
them  a  number  of  horses,  sheep,  and  other  animals, 
with  many  plants,  roots,  and  seeds,  which  they  hoped 
to  cultivate  on  the  island.  On  the  arrival  of  the 
party,  they  were  welcomed  at  Tamatave  by  two  of 
the  missionary  artisans  who  had  come  down  from  the 
capital  to  inform  them  of  the  state  of  the  Mission,  and 
who  also  brought  a  message  from  the  queen  that  the 
missionaries  and  all  their  stores  were  to  be  sent  to 
Antananarivo  free  of  expense.  Permission  was  given 
to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Atkinson  to  remain  twelve  months 
in  the  island. 

Other  signs  of  encouragement  occurred  at  this  time 
which  gave  the  missionaries  hope  that  the  work  of 
God  was  about  to  prosper  gloriously.  At  the  general 
examination  of  the  schools  the  queen  sent  an  order 
for  the  scholars  to  attend  regularly  the  teaching  of 
the  Christian  agents ;  on  the  completion  of  the  cutting 
of  a  canal,  an  important  work  carried  out  by  the 
artisans,  she  sent  a  message  expressing  the  great 
obligation  the  nation  was  under  to  the  Mission,  and 
thus  a  prospect  of  the  wide  extension  of  the  Gospel 
seemed  to  be  opening  out. 

But  all  this  favour  was  only  temporary,  and  was 
like  the  flash  of  light  which  sometimes  precedes  the 
darkening  cloud  and  the  destructive  tempest.     To- 


GOSPEL   ROOTING   ITSELF — GATHERING   STORM.      57 

wards  the  close  of  the  year  an  order  was  received 
from  the  Government  prohibiting  the  administration 
of  the  rites  of  baptism  and  the  Lord's  Supper ; 
officers  in  the  army  who  had  professed  Christianity 
or  were  favourable  to  it  were  degraded  to  a  lower 
rank,  and  attempts  were  made  to  divest  the  education 
imparted  in  the  numerous  schools  of  any  religious 
character.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Atkinson,  who  were  giving 
valuable  service  in  the  cause  of  education,  were 
informed  that  they  must  leave  the  island  at  the  end 
of  the  year.  The  English  Christians  saw  clearly  that 
they  were  only  allowed  to  work  on  sufferance,  and 
that  their  presence  was  only  permitted  because  of  the 
impulse  they  were  giving  to  civilisation  and  educa- 
tion. They  redoubled  their  exertions  to  pour  a  true 
religious  literature  upon  the  people,  and  to  instruct 
them  in  the  public  services,  and  they  were  greatly 
stimulated  by  the  increasing  solicitude  with  which  the 
people  both  pressed  to  listen  to  them,  and  desired  the 
books  which  passed  through  their  press.  Not  less 
than  21,000  copies  of  various  publications  were 
issued  in  the  course  of  the  year. 

In  1832  the  first  death  among  the  converts  occurred. 
It  was  that  of  Rabenohaja,  a  poor  slave  whose 
business  it  was  to  attend  his  young  master  to  school  ; 
and  in  so  doing,  he  learnt  also  to  read.  By  careful 
reading  of  the  New  Testament  he  had  been  led  to 
believe  in  Christ,  and  was  one  of  the  first  natives  to 
express  a  desire  for  baptism.  It  may  here  be  said 
that  in  baptising  the  natives  the  missionaries  did  not 
encourage  them  to  take  new  names,  but  simply  asked 
them  to  pronounce  their  names  before  baptism,  and 
then  performed  the  rite  without  further  questioning. 


58      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

When  Rabenohaja  was  asked  his  name,  he  replied, 
"  Ra-poor-negro."  Mr.  Griffiths  being  surprised,  asked 
him  again,  but  he  answered,  "  Yes,  that  is  the  name 
I  wish  to  take,"  and  he  was  forthwith  baptised  in  it. 
When  he  was  afterwards  asked  why  he  assumed  so 
singular  a  name,  he  said  :  "  Oh,  I  had  seen  in  your 
printing  office  the  tract  of  The  Poor  Negro  with  a 
woodcut  representing  him  with  his  knees  bended  and 
his  eyes  lifted  up  to  heaven,  and  I  thought,  being  a 
slave  like  him,  there  was  nothing  I  so  much  desired 
as  to  become  like  him  in  spirit,  and  therefore  I  took 
his  name." 

He  showed  great  earnestness  from  this  time  in  the 
study  of  the  Bible ;  he  had  the  greatest  enjoyment  in 
all  religious  exercises,  and  became  of  great  service 
to  his  own  class.  Not  long  after  his  baptism  he  was 
seized  with  Malagasy  fever  and  was  cut  off  by  it. 
Sorrow,  darkness,  and  despair  are  the  usual  attend- 
ants of  death  in  Madagascar,  but  this  first  trophy  of 
the  Gospel  who  went  home  to  heaven  from  there  was 
filled  with  perfect  peace.  "  I  am  going  to  Jehovah 
Jesus,"  he  said;  "Jesus  is  fetching  me.  I  do  not 
fear  ;  I  do  not  fear." 

The  queen  and  her  followers  who  had  usurped  the 
government  of  Madagascar  on  the  death  of  Radama 
were  not  left  undisturbed  in  the  exercise  of  their 
authority.  A  large  force  of  Sakalavas  gathered  in  the 
district  west  of  the  capital  with  the  object  of  invading 
the  province  of  Imerina.  The  Government  sent  a  large 
body  of  troops  against  them  but  no  battle  took  place. 
In  183 1  an  army  had  been  sent  to  attack  the  southern 
provinces,  under  the  command  of  the  chief  officer, 
who  was  a  bigoted   supporter  of  the  ancient  idols. 


GOSPEL   ROOTING   ITSELF— GATHERING   STORM.      59 

Before  the  host  left  Antananarivo  a  great  ceremonial 
was  held  for  the  purpose  of  securing  the  protection  of 
Rakelimalaza,  one  of  the  national  idols.  The  idol  was 
carried  through  the  lines  of  soldiers,  followed  by 
priests,  who  sprinkled  them  with  so  called  sacred 
water  as  they  passed.  This,  they  were  told,  would 
keep  them  from  harm  and  secure  them  success.  The 
Christians  in  the  army  begged  to  be  absent  from  the 
ceremony,  as  they  could  not  conscientiously  counten- 
ance it.  The  general  consented  to  their  absence,  but 
said  the  idol  would  be  revenged  upon  them. 

The  army  then  marched  to  the  scene  of  warfare.  It 
was  divided  into  three  parts.  The  largest  division  was 
led  by  the  general,  and  the  idol  was  carried  with  it, 
so  as  to  give  it  special  protection  and  success.  It  was 
a  remarkable  thing  that  in  this  campaign  this  section 
suffered  the  severest  defeat  and  lost  the  largest 
number  of  lives.  The  division  containing  the  Christ- 
ian soldiers  was  placed  in  the  most  dangerous  positions 
and  was  preserved  almost  intact.  The  Christians 
distinguished  themselves  by  their  kindness  towards 
their  captives  and  their  purity  of  life.  They  held 
frequent  meetings  for  praise  and  prayer  during  the 
war,  and  when  the  campaign  was  over  they  were  able 
to  report  to  the  missionaries  that  many  of  their  com- 
rades had  been  won  from  idolatry  to  the  faith  of 
Jesus. 

Other  raids  were  made  by  the  Government  upon 
weaker  tribes,  and  immense  numbers  of  lives  were 
sacrificed  in  these  wars.  Then  reports  were  circulated 
that  the  French  were  returning  to  the  island,  and  every 
teacher  and  scholar  above  the  age  of  thirteen  was 
drafted  for  the  army.     This  made  parents  more  reluc- 


60      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

tant  than  ever  to  send  their  children  to  the  schools,  and 
many  of  them  purchased  young  slaves  and  sent  them 
as  substitutes  for  their  own  children.  By  this  artifice 
the  slaves  were  drafted  into  the  army  and  the  children 
of  the  parents  were  left  at  home.  About  three  thou- 
sand pupils  were  withdrawn  from  the  Mission  schools 
by  this  action  of  the  Government.  The  work  of  the 
Mission  was  by  no  means  lost,  for  the  pupils  carried 
with  them  not  only  the  advantages  of  secular  know- 
ledge but  the  careful  training  in  godliness  which 
had  always  been  the  chief  object  of  the  missionaries. 
About  15,000  pupils  had  passed  through  the  schools, 
and  many  of  these  had  taught  members  of  their  own 
families  to  read,  so  that  probably  not  less  than  double 
that  number  were  now  able  to  read  the  Word  of 
God  in  their  own  language.  At  this  time  the 
British  and  Foreign  Bible  Society  and  the  Religious 
Tract  Society  made  large  donations  to  supply  these 
readers  with  the  Bible  and  other  useful  books. 

The  missionaries  now  sought  a  wider  diffusion  of 
the  Gospel  and  took  frequent  journeys  into  the 
country,  preaching  to  large  numbers  of  people.  Very 
many  renounced  their  idols  and  became  disciples  of 
Christ.  They  cast  away  their  charms  and  burnt  their 
idols.  Among  the  idols  renounced  was  one  which 
had  been  a  great  source  of  income  to  its  possessor. 
It  belonged  to  the  chief  of  the  district  and  had  been 
in  his  family  for  several  generations.  It  was  a  most 
miserable  object.  It  consisted  of  a  piece  of  wood, 
circular  in  form,  seven  inches  long,  and  three-quarters 
of  an  inch  broad.  This  was  surrounded  by  six  short 
pieces  of  wood  and  six  hollow  silver  ornaments, 
shaped  like  crocodiles'  teeth.     Three  pieces  of  wood 


GOSPEL    ROOTING   ITSELF — GATHERING   STORM.      6 1 

were  placed  on  one  side  and  three  on  the  other  side, 
the  silver  ornaments  being  placed  between  them. 
These  were  filled  with  sacred  oil  to  be  used  in  the 
consecration  of  charms  and  other  objects  of  super- 
stition. Sometimes  the  silver  ornaments  were  detached 
from  the  idol,  filled  with  pieces  of  wood,  and  worn  by- 
persons  who  were  going  to  war  or  travelling  through  a 
plague-haunted  district.  Small  square  pieces  of  wood 
were  strung  like  beads  on  a  string  and  attached  to 
the  idol  or  worn  by  the  persons  who  carried  the 
silver  ornaments.  The  chief  who  owned  this  idol  had 
two  sons  in  the  army,  and  to  one  of  them  he  intrusted 
these  small  pieces  of  holy  wood,  to  be  sold  to  those 
who  wished  to  be  preserved  from  all  danger  in  war  or 
pestilence.  Such  virtue  was  supposed  to  rest  in  these 
bits  of  wood  that  often  a  couple  of  sheep  or  goats 
or  bullocks  would  be  given  for  one  of  them. 

In  1832  Mr.  Johns  visited  the  village  where  this 
idol  was  kept.  He  spent  much  time  with  the  chief 
who  owned  it,  and  on  departing  he  cordially  invited 
the  young  officer  who  had  charge  of  the  sale  of  the 
wooden  charms  to  visit  him  in  Antananarivo.  The 
invitation  was  accepted,  and  in  the  capital  Mr.  Johns 
had  serious  conversation  with  him  and  gave  him  a 
copy  of  the  New  Testament.  He  carefully  read  the 
book  and  had  conversations  with  Mr.  Johns  until  he 
became  convinced  of  the  foolishness  of  idolatry  and 
turned  with  simple  earnest  faith  to  the  Lord  Jesus. 
The  young  convert  now  sought  to  persuade  his 
relatives  to  abandon  their  superstitions,  and  succeeded 
with  several  of  them.  His  parents,  however,  mourned 
over  his  conduct  because  he  now  refused  to  sell  the 
charms  which  had  been  so  ^reat  a  source  of  wealth 


62      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

to  them.  The  heathen  party  had  all  its  persecuting 
instincts  aroused  by  the  conversion  of  this  young 
officer  and  he  was  accused  before  the  queen  of  being 
guilty  of  witchcraft.  He  was  condemned  to  pass 
through  the  ordeal  of  drinking  the  tangena  water. 
Some  of  his  friends  tried  to  induce  him  to  appeal  to 


MALAGASY    IDOL. 


divination  for  a  favourable  issue,  but  he  refused  and 
boldly  committed  himself  to  the  will  of  God.  He 
drank  the  poison  water  and  passed  the  trial  success- 
fully. He  quickly  recovered  from  the  effects  of  it, 
and  his  restoration  so  impressed  his  family  that  their 
confidence  in  the  idol  was  completely  shaken,  they 
became  sincere  Christians,  the  idol  was  given  up  to  the 


GOSPEL   ROOTING   ITSELF — GATHERING   STORM.      63 

missionary,  and  it  is  now  preserved  in  the  Museum  of 
the  London  Missionary  Society.  The  young  officer 
remained  a  humble  and  useful  Christian  and  died  a 
peaceful  death  about  the  close  of  the  year  1833. 

Another  interesting  instance  of  the  giving  up  of 
idols  is  recorded  about  this  time.  A  husband  and 
wife  had  ordered  from  a  maker  of  idols  a  household 
god.  On  the  day  appointed  they  went  to  receive  it, 
but  it  was  not  ready,  and  they  had  to  wait  for  it  till 
the  evening.  The  idol-maker  went  to  the  forest, 
selected  a  piece  of  wood,  made  the  idol  and  left  the 
fragments  of  his  work  scattered  near  the  fire-place. 
The  visitors  were  invited  to  share  his  evening  meal 
and  he  used  the  fragments  of  the  idol  wood  to  boil  his 
rice.  They  paid  for  their  treasure  and  returned  home. 
Soon  afterwards  a  Christian  friend  visited  them  and 
read  the  Scriptures  to  them.  Amongst  other  words 
he  read  Isaiah  xliv.  16,  17,  "with  part  he  roasteth 
roast,  maketh  a  fire,  warmeth  himself,  and  the  residue 
thereof  he  maketh  a  god."  The  woman  was  startled 
and  impressed  by  the  exact  description  of  what  had 
taken  place  at  the  idol-maker's,  and  abandoning  idol 
worship  she  became  a  follower  of  Jesus. 

At  the  end  of  1834  the  Mission  looked  brighter  in 
prospects  than  ever.  In  the  capital  two  hundred 
persons  had  joined  the  Church,  many  were  attending 
classes  for  the  study  of  the  Bible,  and  crowds  came  to 
the  public  services.  Many  meetings  were  also  held  in 
towns  and  villages  ranging  over  a  district  of  one 
hundred  miles  round,  and  a  large  distribution  of  the 
Scriptures  was  made  in  those  places.  The  Government 
entered  into  a  new  engagement  with  Mr.  Cameron,  the 
principal  of  the  machine  shops,  and  thus  hope  was 


64      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

given  that  for  some  years  the  work  of  the  Mission 
would  not  be  interfered  with. 

But  very  quickly  the  sky  darkened  and  clouds  of 
ominous  blackness  overspread  the  horizon.  The  first 
indication  of  persecution  was  an  order  from  the  queen 
that  no  one  should  learn  to  read  or  write  save  in  the 


OPEN-AIR    PREACHING. 


schools  established  by  the  Government.  Early  in  1835 
it  was  evident  that  some  further  discouragement  was 
to  be  given  to  the  Mission  by  the  jubilant  tone  of  the 
supporters  of  heathenism.  The  queen's  chief  advisers 
were  three  brothers,  who  were  in  league  to  do  all  they 
could  to  suppress  Christianity,  and  they  recognised 


GOSPEL   ROOTING   ITSELF— GATHERING   STORM.      65 

that  the  time  had  now  come  when  a  decisive  blow 
might  be  aimed  at  it.  These  officers  had  several 
relatives  who  were  members  of  the  Christian  Church, 
among  whom  was  a  nephew  who  was  the  keeper  of  the 
national  idols.  In  January  this  young  man  was  told 
by  one  of  his  uncles,  who  had  adopted  him  as  his  son, 
that  at  an  approaching  festival  the  queen  would  pre- 
sent a  bullock  to  the  chief  idol,  and  that  he  would  be 
expected  both  to  offer  sacrifice  to  it  and  afterwards 
to  eat  a  portion  of  the  meat  sacrificed.  He  firmly 
declined  to  do  this,  and  the  chiefs  were  greatly  enraged 
not  only  against  the  young  man,  but  against  the  faith 
which  inspired  him  to  disobey  the  mandate. 

Soon  after  this  a  Christian  was  observed  to  be  at 
work  on  a  day  which  was  reckoned  as  sacred  to  the 
idols,  and  he  declared  to  his  friends  that  faith  in  such 
things  was  useless  and  wicked.  A  complaint  was  pre- 
sented to  the  queen  against  him,  and  charges  were 
made  at  the  same  time  against  the  Christians — that 
they  made  light  of  the  ancient  gods,  that  they  offered 
prayer  to  their  own  God,  but  especially  that  their 
women  refused  to  practise  the  immorality  which  was 
general  among  the  women  of  the  island.  The  man 
was  ordered  to  undergo  the  trial  by  tangena  water, 
which  he  did  successfully.  The  anger  of  the  queen 
however  burned  as  fiercely  as  ever. 

Shortly  after  this  the  queen  was  sick  and  the  chief ' 
officer  of  the  Government  was  sent  to  the  idol  for  a 
powerful  charm  which  it  was  said  would  restore  her. 
Some  of  his  relatives  who  were  Christians  spoke 
to  him  of  the  true  God  who  alone  could  heal  and 
restore,  affirming  that  the  idol  and  its  charms  could 
effect  no  cure.      The  queen,  on   being  told   of  this, 

E 


66      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

expressed  much  displeasure ;  and  a  few  days  after- 
wards, on  passing  one  of  the  churches,  and  hearing 
the  members  singing,  she  exclaimed  :  "  They  will  not 
stop  till  some  of  them  lose  their  heads." 

The  Christians  were  fully  alive  to  the  seriousness  of 
the  crisis.  They  sought  to  avoid  every  occasion  of 
offence,  but  fortified  themselves  by  much  prayer  to 
endure  hardship  as  good  soldiers.  Their  enemies  daily 
plied  the  queen  with  stories  of  them  calculated  to  lead 
her  to  conclude  that  they  were  labouring  to  under- 
mine her  throne  and  authority.  Still  the  numbers 
who  thronged  to  listen  to  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel 
and  to  unite  with  the  Church  were  greater  than  ever. 

One  day  a  chief  of  the  highest  rank  came  in  to  the 
queen  and  said  :  "  I  want  a  spear,  a  bright  and  sharp 
one  ;  grant  my  request ! "  He  was  asked  the  reason 
for  such  a  demand  and  he  answered  that  he  had 
observed  the  rapid  growth  of  the  Christians,  that  he 
was  assured  they  aimed  at  subverting  the  old  system 
of  religion  entirely,  and  he  desired  to  plunge  the 
spear  to  his  heart  ere  the  evil  day  came. 

This  so  much  aroused  the  queen  that  she  declared 
she  would  destroy  Christianity,  if  it  cost  the  life  of 
every  Christian  in  the  island.  For  a  fortnight  there 
was  profound  silence  in  the  palace — no  music,  or 
games,  or  reading — but  a  deep  solemn  stillness,  which 
rested  heavily  upon  every  one  as  a  presage  of  the 
coming  storm. 

On  the  26th  of  February  the  missionaries  and  other 
Englishmen  were  summoned  to  the  palace  to  receive 
a  message  from  the  sovereign.  It  was  to  the  effect 
that,  while  she  thanked  them  for  the  good  services 
the}-  had   rendered   to  the  country,  and  while  they 


GOSPEL   ROOTING    ITSELF — GATHERING   STORM.      6"] 

were  at  liberty  to  follow  their  own  religious  customs, 
she  would  not  permit  her  subjects  to  depart  from 
their  old  national  customs,  and  that  in  future  she 
would  not  allow  them  to  practise  baptism,  or  keep 
the  Sabbath,  or  remain  members  of  the  Christian 
churches.  She  gave  full  permission  for  the  teaching 
of  the  arts  or  sciences,  but  not  religion.  The  mission- 
aries sent  a  petition  earnestly  entreating  her  not  to 
suppress  their  meetings,  or  prevent  their  work,  but  to 
continue  to  her  subjects  the  religious  liberty  they  had 
so  long  enjoyed.  To  this  a  reply  was  speedily  sent, 
declaring  that  the  queen  firmly  adhered  to  her  decision. 

On  the  ist  of  March  a  great  assembly  of  the  people 
was  held  at  Antananarivo.  Not  less  than  150,000 
people  were  estimated  to  be  present.  The  day  was 
ushered  in  by  the  firing  of  cannon,  to  give  it  special 
importance.  Fifteen  thousand  soldiers  were  assem- 
bled with  the  view  of  showing  the  determination  of 
Ranavalona  to  enforce  her  decree.  An  edict  was  read, 
forbidding  anyone  to  refuse  to  worship  the  idols,  and 
observe  the  old  customs  of  the  land  ;  also  prohibiting 
Christian  baptism,  the  observance  of  the  Lord's 
Supper  and  the  Sabbath,  and  requiring  all  persons 
who  had  become  Christians  to  report  themselves  at 
the  palace  within  a  month.  If  they  failed  to  thus 
confess  and  accuse  themselves,  and  were  informed 
against  by  others,  they  would  surely  be  put  to  death. 

A  deep  silence  followed  the  reading  of  the  message, 
which  was  broken  by  some  prominent  chiefs  remon- 
strating against  its  severity,  and  proposing  to  present 
a  peace-offering  to  Ranavalona  on  condition  that  it 
should  be  modified  so  as  not  to  pry  into  the  past,  and 
that  it  should  not  require  self-accusation.     The  judges 


68      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS, 

promised  to  consult  the  queen,  and  return  an  answer 
on  the  following  day.  On  the  morrow  an  immense 
multitude  again  assembled.  They  were  informed 
that  the  queen  adhered  to  her  decision  ;  but  that 
instead  of  a  month,  only  one  week  would  be  allowed 
for  the  self-accusation,  and  that  further  expostula- 
tion was  forbidden.  An  order  was  sent  to  the  mis- 
sionaries to  abandon  all  religious  teaching,  but 
permitting  the  continuance  of  lessons  in  science  by 
Mr.  Cameron.  All  the  pupils  in  the  schools,  numbering 
several  hundreds,  led  by  twelve  senior  teachers,  atten- 
ded at  the  palace  to  accuse  themselves.  They  were 
deeply  affected,  and  many  of  them  had  determined  to 
suffer  death  rather  than  return  to  the  worship  of  idols. 
After  several  days  had  been  spent  in  hearing 
confessions,  an  edict  was  published,  degrading  about 
four  hundred  who  had  held  office  under  the  queen 
or  the  Government  to  one-third  of  their  rank  and 
income.  Those  who  held  no  office  were  fined  accord- 
ing to  the  measure  of  their  Christian  practice.  There 
was  scarcely  a  family  in  or  near  Antananarivo  which 
was  not  to  some  extent  involved  in  the  accusations, 
and  the  greatest  consternation  generally  prevailed 
during  the  days  of  this  awful  week.  The  practice  of 
Christianity  was  artfully  represented  to  the  queen  as 
being  treasonable  to  her,  and  defiant  of  the  ancient 
customs,  and  she  was  incited  to  commence  the  shed- 
ding of  blood.  The  great  body  of  the  believers  stood 
bravely  to  their  faith  and  gave  themselves  unceasingly 
to  prayer.  A  few  were  appalled  by  the  prospect  of 
punishment,  and  apostatised  by  either  plunging  into 
sin,  or  denying  ever  having  believed  in  Christ.  These 
were  a  few  tares  in  a  beautiful  harvest  field. 


GOSPEL   ROOTING   ITSELF — GATHERING   STORM.      69 

There  were  some  signal  examples  of  bravery  and 
fortitude  among  the  natives.  One  prominent  member 
declared  before  the  judges  that  during  nearly  four 
years  he  had  prayed  several  times  each  day,  confes- 
sing his  sins,  imploring  Divine  help  to  live  well, 
seeking  blessings  upon  his  family,  his  friends,  the 
queen,  and  the  country.  He  earnestly  exhorted  the 
judges  to  believe  in  Jesus.  He  was  listened  to  with 
great  attention,  and  was  assured  that  his  prayers  were 
good,  but  they  were  opposed  to  the  will  of  the  queen, 
and  must  be  given  up.  Companies  of  Christians  met 
at  midnight  to  pray  in  secret.  One  such  meeting  was 
held  in  the  vestry  of  the  church  at  Ambatonakanga  ; 
and  one  night  an  officer  of  high  rank  came  in,  and 
declared  he  was  so  grieved  at  the  injustice  of  the 
Government  that  he  had  determined  to  join  the 
persecuted  band.  This  man  became  a  noble  fol- 
lower of  Christ  and  a  true  friend  of  the  Christians 
in  the  time  of  trouble. 

The  missionaries  continued  in  every  way  possible 
to  them  to  impart  consolation  and  instruction  to  the 
afflicted  churches ;  but  the  risk  was  great,  and  much 
caution  had  to  be  exercised.  Still,  the  converts  were 
numerous,  and  the  believers  pressed  to  the  Lord's 
Table,  and  eagerly  drank  in  the  preacher's  word. 

The  great  work  of  translating  the  whole  Bible 
was  finished  by  the  unremitting  and  united  labour 
of  the  missionaries,  and  Mr.  Baker,  the  head  of 
the  missionary  printers,  with  his  assistants,  printed 
off  many  copies.  This  was  a  boon  only  second 
to  the  introduction  into  the  island  of  Christi- 
anity itself,  and  many  people  walked  sixty  and  a 
hundred   miles  to  obtain  the  volume.     Followinsr  this 


70      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

Messrs.  Freeman  and  Johns  compiled  English  and 
Malagasy  dictionaries,  which  are  in  use  to  this  day. 

All  aggressive  mission  work  was  now  at  an  end. 
The  Government  would  gladly  have  kept  the  artisans, 
especially  the  smiths  and  machinists,  to  carry  on  their 
useful  secular  work,  but  these  men  were  Christians 
first  and  artisans  second,  and  resolved  to  leave  the 
country.  In  June  Mr.  Freeman,  accompanied  by 
Messrs.  Cameron,  Chick,  and  Kitching,  left  Antanan- 
arivo, leaving  Messrs.  Johns  and  Baker  to  hold  the 
fort  for  a  short  time  longer. 

The  year  1836  proved  to  be  one  of  bitterest  trial  to 
the  Mission.  The  Government,  so  far  from  being 
appeased  by  the  departure  of  so  many  of  the  English 
Christians,  became  more  severe.  The  servants  of  the 
remaining  missionaries  had  to  undergo  the  ordeal  of  the 
tangena,  and  several  of  them  died  from  its  effects.  An 
infant  born  to  one  of  them  was  killed  by  the  queen's 
order  when  a  day  old,  and  the  Sabbath  was  desecrated 
by  compulsory  work  and  low  amusements. 

Mr.  Freeman  occupied  his  time  chiefly  in  the  trans- 
lation into  Malagasy  of  the  incomparable  prose  poem 
by  the  Tinker  of  Bedford  Gaol,  "  The  Pilgrim's 
Progress."  The  peculiar  situation  of  the  native 
Christians  tended  to  make  it  a  most  attractive  book 
to  them,  and  the  translator  felt  from  his  own  position 
such  living  sympathy  with  his  work  as  to  transfuse  it 
with  much  of  the  vigour  and  quaintness  of  the  original. 
The  Christians  were  obliged  to  exercise  the  greatest 
caution  in  recognising  each  other,  and  adopted  a  kind 
of  spiritual  freemasonry  in  doing  so.  For  example, 
one  would  quote  Jer.  xxxviii.  15,  "  If  I  declare  it  unto 
thee,  wilt  thou  not  directly  put  me  to  death  ?  "     And 


GOSPEL   ROOTING   ITSELF — GATHERING   STORM.      7  I 

in  reply  the  following  verse  would  be  given  : — "  As 
the  Lord  liveth  which  made  us  this  soul,  I  will  not  put 
thee  to  death,  neither  will  I  give  thee  unto  the  hands 
of  those  men  who  seek  thy  life."  Like  the  early 
Christians  who  met  in  the  sand  caves  of  Rome,  or  the 
Covenanters  who  gathered  on  the  mountains  or  in  the 
forest  glades  of  Scotland,  the  Malagasy  met  on  the 
tops  of  hills  or  on  extensive  plains,  and  there  sent  up 
the  strain  of  praise  and  prayer  to  the  Eternal  Father. 
The  remaining  missionaries  now  received  notice 
from  the  Government  to  follow  their  brethren.  Their 
preparations  for  quitting  the  island  were  soon  com- 
pleted. They  left  with  the  native  Christians  about 
seventy  Bibles,  several  boxes  filled  with  copies  of  the 
Psalms,  the  New  Testament  and  Hymn  Books,  and 
commending  their  afflicted  flocks  to  God  by  fervent 
prayer,  Messrs.  Johns  and  Baker  departed  from  the 
island  in  July,  after  a  bright  career  of  devoted  service 
in  the  noblest  of  all  causes. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


THE  NOBLE  ARMY  OF  MARTYRS. 


"Their  blood  is  shed 
In  confirmation  of  the  noblest  claim, — 
Our  claim  to  feed  upon  immortal  truth, 
To  walk  with  God,  to  be  divinely  free 
To  soar  and  to  anticipate  the  skies." — Cowper. 

THE  first  special  object  of  the  persecution  which 
was  about  to  rage  with  bloodthirsty  fierceness 
was  a  lady  named  Rafaravavy,  who  had  become 

an  earnest  Christian  during  the  life  of  King 
Radama.  Her  family  had  long  been  zealots  in  behalf 
of  the  old  superstitions,  but  she  had  been  led  to  Christ 
chiefly  by  means  of  a  native  Christian.  She  then  took 
a  large  house  in  Antananarivo  and  consecrated  it  for 
the  use  of  the  Mission.  In  this  house  Rafaravavy  and 
a  group  of  friends  met  frequently  for  Bible  reading 
and  prayer,  after  the  edict  of  Ranavalona  was  issued. 
Three  of  her  slaves  gave  information  of  these  meetings 
to  the  Government.  When  Rafaravavy  heard  of  it  she 
hid  her  Bibles  and  other  Christian  books  and  calmly 
waited  the  result.     Her  father,  although  a  heathen, 

72 


THE  NOBLE  ARMY  OF   MARTYRS.  73 

ordered  the  slaves  to  be  fettered  and  imprisoned,  but 
she  liberated  them,  wept  over  them,  freely  forgave 
them,  and  spoke  to  them  fervently  as  to  the  salvat  on 
of  God  Two  of  them  were  won  by  her  piety  to  the 
side  of  Christ,  and  one  of  them  afterwards  became  a 

"when  Rafaravavy  was  brought  before  the  judges 
she  was  questioned  as  to  the  names  of  her  compan- 
ions.   These  she  firmly  refused  to  give.     On  this  the 
queen    ordered    her    to  be    at   once   put   to   death. 
Several  high  officials  pleaded  for  her  life  on  the  ground 
of  eminent  services  rendered  to  the  state  by  her  father 
and  brother,  and  she  was  reprieved.   In  a  few  days  an 
officer  brought  her  the  news  that  her  sentence  was 
commuted  into  a  fine,  but  she  was  warned  that  .f  she 
offended   again   her  life  would  be  taken.     On   her 
release  she  was  carefully  watched  by  her  enemies,  and 
to  avoid  them  she  took  a  house  at  Ambatonakanga. 
and  in  it  a  party  of  Christians  gathered,  some  of  them 
coming  many  miles,  to  worship  the  God  who  had 

saved  them.  ^. 

About  a  year  after  this  escape,  two  women  went 
before  the  judges  and  informed  against  ten  Christians 
who  had  met  in  the  house  of  Rafaravavy  for  prayer. 
When  the  news  was  carried  to  the  queen  she  swore, 
sayinc^-  "Then  they  shall  die,  for  they  despise  my 
lavv"  The  persons  accused  were  at  once  arrested. 
Officers  visited  Rafaravavy  and  requested  her  to  dis- 
cover her  friends,  telling  her  that  the  queen  knew 
them,  but  she  must  tell  the  whole  truth.  The  brave 
woman  answered  :  "  If  the  queen  knows,  why  do  you 

One  of  her  associates  who  had  confessed  to  having 


74      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

prayed  with  her  was  brought  and  confronted  with  her. 
She  boldly  admitted  it.  She  was  asked  where  they 
had  prayed,  and  said  :  "  In  our  own  houses  and  many 
other  places."  They  asked  if  she  had  not  prayed  on  a 
certain  mountain  ?  She  said  :  "  Yes,  but  not  there 
only.  Wherever  we  went  we  remembered  God,  in  the 
house  and  out  of  it ;  in  the  town,  the  country,  and  on 
the  mountains." 

The  other  prisoners  were  closely  examined,  and  a 
young  woman  named  Rasalama  being  told  that  the 
others  had  given  a  full  list  of  those  concerned  in 
the  meeting,  and  that  it  would  be  to  her  benefit  to  do 
likewise,  gave  the  names  of  seven  more  than  those 
apprehended.  Amongst  these  was  Paul  the  aged 
diviner,  previously  mentioned  as  owning  a  famous 
idol,  and  the  whole  were  at  once  arrested.  When 
Paul  was  examined  he  fully  admitted  his  crime.  He 
aaid  :  "  I  have  prayed  to  that  God  who  created  me 
and  supports  me,  who  is  the  source  of  all  good,  to 
make  me  a  good  man.  I  prayed  that  He  would  bless 
the  queen  and  give  her  true  happiness  both  in  this 
world  and  the  next.  I  asked  Him  to  bless  the  officers 
and  judges,  and  all  the  people  so  that  there  might  be 
no  more  brigands  or  liars,  and  that  God  would  make 
all  the  people  wise  and  good."  The  officers  were 
much  impressed,  and  observed  that  there  was  no  evil 
but  good  in  such  prayer,  and  there  followed  among 
themselves  conversation  as  to  the  policy  of  punishing 
people  for  such  conduct. 

In  fourteen  days  an  order  was  issued  to  the  people 
to  pillage  the  house  and  property  of  Rafaravavy. 
They  rushed  into  her  dwelling,  and  carried  off  all  it 
■contained,  afterwards  pulling  down  and  removing  the 


THE   NOBLE   ARMY   OF   MARTYRS.  75 

materials  of  which  the  house  was  composed.  Rafar- 
avavy  was  led  by  four  soldiers,  who  usually  conducted 
executions,  to  the  place  where  criminals  were  put  to 
death.  She  thought  her  end  was  come,  and  in  the 
words  of  Stephen  she  committed  her  soul  to  Christ. 
A  Christian  friend  came  near  enough  for  her  to  speak 
to  him,  and  she  asked  him  to  keep  near  her,  so  that 
if  she  had  strength  to  bear  testimony  for  Christ  at  the 
last,  he  could  use  it  to  encourage  any  who  might 
have  to  suffer  in  like  manner.  On  the  way,  she  was 
taken  into  a  house  and  fetters  were  placed  upon  her 
limbs.  As  the  smith  was  riveting  them  upon  her, 
one  of  the  soldiers  said  :  "  Do  not  make  them  too 
fast,  as  it  will  be  difficult  to  take  them  off,  and  she  is 
to  be  executed  at  cock  crow  to-morrow  morning." 

But  during  that  night  a  considerable  portion  of  the 
capital  was  destroyed  by  fire,  and  the  consternation 
caused  by  this  event  was  so  great  that  the  execution 
of  Rafaravavy  was  delayed.  Rasalama,  the  woman 
who  had  been  drawn  into  betraying  seven  of  her 
comrades  into  the  hands  of  their  persecutors,  was  kept 
in  confinement,  and  a  relative  informed  her  that  the 
Government  would  not  have  known  anything  against 
those  she  had  implicated  but  for  her  betrayal.  She  was 
overwhelmed  with  grief  at  the  tidings,  and  expressed 
her  surprise  that  those  who  were  guilty  of  no  fault 
should  be  subjected  to  severe  punishment.  She  also 
declared  that  she  had  no  fear  when  she  was  arrested, 
but  rather  was  glad  to  be  reckoned  worthy  to  suffer 
for  Christ,  adding,  "  I  have  hope  of  life  in  heaven." 

What  Rasalama  said  was  repeated  to  the  com- 
mander-in-chief, who  ordered  her  to  be  put  in  irons 
and    to   be  beaten.      She    continued   singing  hymns- 


^6      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

and  said  to  her  tormentors :  "  My  life  shall  go  for 
my  companions.  You  say,  Rafaravavy  will  be  put 
to  death  ;  but  no,  she  will  not  die,  I  shall  be  killed 
instead  of  her,"  She  was  ordered  to  be  executed  the 
next  morning,  and  in  the  meantime  was  kept  in 
irons,  which  were  fastened  to  her  feet,  hands,  knees 
and  neck,  drawing  her  body  into  an  agonising  position. 

On  the  morrow  as  they  conveyed  her  to  the  place 
of  execution  she  sang  hymns  of  praise,  and  when 
she  passed  the  Christian  church,  exclaimed,  "  There 
I  heard  the  words  of  the  Saviour."  About  a  mile 
farther  on  she  came  to  a  broad  ditch  which  was 
strewed  with  the  bones  of  criminals  previously 
executed.  Here  permission  was  given  her  to  engage 
in  prayer.  She  knelt  upon  the  ground,  and  with  calm 
and  peaceful  fortitude  committed  her  soul  into  the 
hands  of  the  Lord  Jesus.  Then  the  executioners 
hurled  their  spears,  and  the  martyr  spirit  went  home. 
Some  of  the  bystanders  scoffed,  but  many  more  were 
moved  with  pity.  The  executioners  were  led  to  remark 
on  the  charm  there  appeared  to  be  in  Christianity  to 
take  away  the  fear  of  death,  and  one  Christian  who 
was  present  exclaimed  when  reporting  the  event  to 
his  friends  :  "  If  I  might  die  so  tranquil  and  happy  a 
death  I  would  willingly  suffer  for  the  Saviour  too." 
The  execution  took  place  on  the  14th  of  August,  1837, 
and  Rasalama  was  the  first  of  a  bright  and  numerous 
train  of  martyrs  who  gladly  sealed  their  testimony  for 
Jesus  with  their  blood. 

After  this  baptism  of  blood,  the  members  of  the 
Church  under  arrest,  about  two  hundred  in  number, 
were  condemned  to  perpetual  slavery.  The  venerable 
Paul,  who  had  been  in  fetters  night  and  day  for  some 


THE   NOBLE   ARMY   OF   MARTYRS.  JJ 

time,  became  a  slave  with  four  fellow-Christians  in  the 
rice  fields  of  the  chief  minister  of  the  Government. 
They  were  fettered  each  night  at  the  close  of  their  work 
and  lived  together  in  a  small  hut.  Here  Paul  comforted 
the  hearts  of  his  fellow-sufferers,  especially  reciting 
almost  daily  the  words  of  the  forty-sixth  Psalm,  which 
was  his  favourite  portion  of  the  Bible.  Rafaravavy 
had  also  been  kept  in  irons  and  carefully  guarded  by 
soldiers.  The  queen  ordered  that  now  she  should  be 
led  into  the  market-place  and  offered  for  sale.  She 
was  bought  by  the  chief  military  officer,  and  given 
into  the  care  of  one  of  his  helpers,  who  treated  her 
kindly  and  allowed  her  to  go  where  she  liked,  so  long 
as  her  apportioned  work  was  well  done.  Her  husband 
was  an  officer  in  the  army,  and  he  obtained  leave  of 
absence  for  some  months  in  order  to  spend  as  much 
time  with  her  as  she  could  give  from  her  daily  task. 

The  next  victim  to  the  persecuting  rage  of  the  queen 
was  Rafaralahy,  a  young  man  who  had  witnessed  the 
execution  of  Rasalama.  He  had  received  the  Christ- 
ians into  his  house  for  worship,  and  a  backslider  from 
the  faith  secretly  informed  against  him,  and  gave  the 
names  of  twelve  others  who  met  with  him  for  prayer. 
He  was  seized  and  heavily  fettered.  Attempts  were 
made  to  force  him  to  betray  his  companions,  but  he 
bravely  refused,  saying :  "  I  am  here,  I  have  done  it, 
let  the  queen  do  with  me  as  she  pleases  ;  I  will  not 
betray  my  friends."  In  three  days  he  was  led  to  the 
place  of  execution.  He  earnestly  exhorted  his 
executioners  to  turn  to  Jesus,  and  assured  them  of  his 
own  happiness.  He  knelt  and  prayed  for  his  country 
and  for  his  associates,  and  then  calmly  gave  himself 
over  to  God.  The  soldiers  prepared  to  throw  him  on  the 


78      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

ground  according  to  their  custom,  but  he  forbade  them 
and  gently  laid  himself  down.  Then  he  was  speared, 
and  his  spirit  passed  away.  After  this  his  persecutors 
seized  his  wife  and  servant  ;  and  bound  and  scourged 
them  until  their  fortitude  gave  way,  and  they  gave  the 
names  of  those  who  had  attended  the  meetings  held 
in  their  house. 

That  day,  when  Rafaravavy  was  conversing  with  a 
few  friends,  all  ignorant  of  the  terrible  cruelties  which 
had  been  perpetrated,  a  note  was  put  into  her  hand. 
As  she  read  it  her  face  changed,  and  she  told  her 
friends  that  Rafaralahy  was  killed,  and  they  were 
betrayed.  There  was  no  safety  for  them  but  in  flight, 
and  Rafaravavy  with  two  other  women  at  once  set  off 
from  the  house.  They  went  to  the  place  of  execution, 
united  in  prayer,  then  bade  each  other  farewell  and 
separated.  Rafaravavy  went  into  the  capital  and 
sought  out  four  of  her  friends.  They  prayed  together, 
sent  a  messenger  to  warn  Paul  and  others,  and  at 
midnight  fled  from  the  place.  That  same  evening  the 
death  warrant  of  Rafaravavy  was  issued.  The  next 
morning  the  officers  in  charge  of  it  went  to  the  house 
of  her  master  and  several  other  places  to  arrest  her. 
They  were  unable  to  discover  her,  but  the  aged  Paul 
and  one  of  her  nephews  were  seized  and  imprisoned. 
For  a  night  and  a  day  she  and  her  friends  travelled 
with  all  speed,  nor  did  they  stop  until  they  reached 
the  residence  of  friends  forty  miles  west  of  Antana- 
narivo where  they  were  joyfully  received. 

For  several  months  this  little  band  of  fugitives 
moved  from  place  to  place,  sometimes  hiding  in  the 
depths  of  the  forest,  and  having  to  tap  the  traveller's 
tree  for  their  support,  sometimes  finding  shelter  with 


THE  NOBLE  ARMY  OF  MARTYRS. 


79 


Christian  friends,  sometimes  in  imminent  peril  of  dis- 
covery from  bands  of  soldiers  who  were  sent  in  pursuit 
of  them. 

One  night  Rafaravavy's  hiding-place  was  reported  to 
a  band  of  pursuers,  and  they  proceeded  to  the  house  to 
apprehend  her.     She  had  only  time  to  hide  behind  a 


MALAGASY    CHRISTIANS    READING    THE   SCRIPTURES    SECRETLY. 


mat  before  the  soldiers  entered  and  demanded  that 
she  should  be  given  up.  She  listened  to  every  word, 
fearful  that  her  breathing  should  betray  her.  After  a 
time  the  master  of  the  house  went  out  and  the  soldiers 
went  with  him  to  watch  his  movements.     At  once  she 


8o      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

made  her  escape  by  another  way.  On  several  other 
occasions  she  was  in  similar  danger,  and  her  life  was 
preserved  as  by  a  miracle. 

At  last  they  heard  that  the  Rev.  D.  Johns  had 
ventured  to  Tamatave  from  Mauritius  in  order  to  find 
out  the  circumstances  of  the  churches,  and,  if  possible, 
to  render  them  help  and  counsel.  Two  of  the  fugi- 
tives set  off  to  see  him,  and  he  gladly  agreed  to  try  to 
arrange  their  escape  from  the  island.  On  receiving 
the  intelligence,  Rafaravavy  and  four  friends,  with  two 
faithful  servants,  set  out  for  the  coast.  They  travelled 
four  days  and  nights  without  entering  a  house,  suf- 
fering much  from  exposure  and  hunger,  but  more 
from  anxiety  lest  they  should  be  discovered.  When 
they  came  within  sight  of  Tamatave  they  hid  them- 
selves in  the  jungle,  sending  one  of  the  servants  with 
a  note  to  a  Christian  friend.  The  servant  returned 
with  the  news  that  all  was  well,  and  that  at  nightfall 
their  friend  would  come  in  a  canoe  to  convey  them  to 
his  dwelling.  This  friend  was  an  officer  in  the  army 
and  also  a  local  judge.  He  came  according  to  his 
message,  and  shortly  the  exhausted  fugitives  were 
under  a  friendly  roof,  partaking  of  refreshment  and 
uniting  in  praise  to  God. 

Shortly  after,  a  ship  arrived  from  Mauritius.  They 
cut  their  hair  and  dressed  in  sailor's  clothes  ;  a  friend 
went  to  the  quay  to  divert  the  attention  of  the  guards, 
and  meanwhile  they  crept  to  the  water's  edge,  got  into 
a  boat,  pushed  off  from  the  land,  rowed  over  the  shim- 
mering waters  of  the  bay,  and  then  climbed  on  the 
deck  of  the  vessel,  which  was  anchored  off  shore.  The 
overpowering  emotions  of  the  Christians  could  find  no 
expression  for  a  time,  and  then,  when  self-possession 


THE  NOBLE  ARMY  OF  MARTYRS.       8 1 

returned,  they  asked  leave  to  sing  a  hymn  of  praise. 
Permission  was  given,  and  the  captain  and  crew 
gathered  round  to  listen  as  the  sweet  song  rose  from 
their  lips. 

They  reached  Mauritius  on  the  r4th  of  October,  1 838. 
In  a  month's  time  they  were  joined  by  the  generous 
judge  and  his  nephew,  who  had  entertained  them  in 
Tamatave  and  aided  their  escape.  The  part  they  had 
taken  in  the  matter  had  been  discovered  and  reported 
to  the  Government,  and  they  had  to  fly  for  their  lives. 
The  rescued  Christians  after  resting  a  while  in 
Mauritius  sailed  for  England,  arriving  early  in  May, 
1839,  and  being  warmly  welcomed  by  the  Directors 
of  the  London  Missionary  Society.  They  remained 
nearly  three  years  in  this  country,  becoming  ac- 
quainted with  many  friends,  all  of  them,  but  Rafa- 
ravavy  especially,  making  a  good  impression  by  their 
intelligence,  their  meekness  and  evident  sincerity. 

They  returned  to  Mauritius  in  1842.  A  piece  of 
ground  was  obtained  and  a  house  built  at  Moka,  in 
which  Rafaravavy  resided  till  her  death,  gathering 
round  her  the  fugitives  who  kept  coming  from 
Madagascar,  providing  them  with  a  comfortable 
refuge  until  they  could  be  otherwise  provided  for,  and 
encouraging  them  to  continued  hope  and  trust  in 
Christ.  After  her  death  the  house  was  still  kept  as  a 
mission  centre,  and  Simeon,  the  last  survivor  of  the 
fugitives,  laboured  earnestly  as  a  missionary  among 
his  own  countrymen  until  he  also  passed  away. 

The  third  victim  of  the  fierce  persecution  was 
Ravahiny,  a  beautiful  young  lady  who  had  been 
divorced  by  her  husband  because  she  had  become  a 
Christian.     Her  father  denied  her  a  shelter,  and  all 

F 


82      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

her  relatives  combined  to  accomplish  her  death.  She 
was  forced  to  drink  the  tangena  water,  and  perished 
under  its  effects.  Then  three  females  were  accused  of 
associating  for  Christian  worship.  When  the  soldiers 
visited  their  house  to  arrest  them,  two  of  the  three 
were  reading  the  Bible.  One  of  them  escaped,  and  the 
other  was  beaten  by  the  soldiers.  Her  Bible  fell  from 
her  dress  while  she  was  being  punished.  She  was 
dragged  to  the  house  of  the  officer,  and  six  men  beat 
hejr  savagely  to  induce  her  to  reveal  the  names  of  her 
friends.  This  she  steadfastly  refused  to  do.  The 
next  day  she  was  taken  before  the  chief  officer,  and 
when  she  again  refused  to  give  the  desired  informa- 
tion was  sentenced  to  be  flogged  until  she  did  so. 
After  being  beaten  she  swooned  with  the  torture  and 
loss  of  blood.  She  was  sold  into  slavery  and  ordered 
to  drink  the  tangena  water,  but  escaped  before  this 
ordeal  was  administered,  and  was  not  heard  of  again. 

The  queen,  whose  thirst  for  blood  seemed  to  wax 
more  fierce,  now  commanded  that  the  soldiers  were  to 
bind,  hands  and  feet,  any  Christians  they  arrested,  dig 
a  pit  and  cast  them  therein  and  pour  upon  them  boil- 
ing water  until  they  died.  They  were  then  to  fill  up 
the  pit  and  proceed  with  their  cruel  work.  This 
was  commanded  under  the  pretence  that  so  many 
Christians  could  not  have  escaped  had  they  not  pos- 
sessed some  charm  which  might  injure  others,  and 
which  made  it  unsafe  for  them  to  be  brought  to  the 
capital  for  trial. 

In  May,  1840,  sixteen  Christians,  some  who  had 
been  imprisoned,  and  others  who  had  been  forced  to 
drink  the  tangena  water  but  had  survived,  commenced 
a  journey  to  the  coast,  intending  to  escape  from  the 


THE  NOBLE  ARMY  OF  MARTYRS.       83 

island.  The  company  contained  Paul,  the  old  diviner, 
and  Joshua,  one  of  the  most  pious  and  devoted  of 
the  native  pastors.  Mr.  Griffiths  now  resided  at  the 
capital  as  a  trader,  and  a  Dr.  Powell  from  Mauritius 
had  also  recently  settled  there.  These  gentlemen 
very  generously  assisted  the  party  in  starting  on 
their  journey.  But  they  were  betrayed,  and  five  weeks 
after  their  flight  they  all  again  entered  the  capital  as 
prisoners,  save  one,  a  young  woman,  who  had  mi- 
raculously escaped.  They  were  dragged  before  the 
judges,  and  each  of  them  questioned  separately  as  to 
the  names  of  other  Christians.  They  refused  to  give 
them,  so  they  were  remanded  awaiting  the  pleasure  of 
the  queen  concerning  them. 

One  young  man  and  a  young  woman  were  confined 
in  the  same  house.  During  the  night  while  the 
guard  slept  the  young  man  gnawed  the  cords  asunder 
which  bound  his  wrist,  and  then  untied  those  at 
his  feet.  He  went  to  release  his  fellow  prisoner,  but 
found  the  soldier  in  charge  lying  asleep  on  the  cords 
which  bound  her.  He  escaped  through  the  window 
of  his  prison,  and  lived  to  testify  in  after  years  to 
the  sufferings  of  the  martyrs.  Mr.  Jones,  the  first 
missionary  to  Madagascar,  was  in  the  capital  at  the 
time,  and  sought  to  comfort  the  minds  of  the  captives. 

On  the  morning  of  July  9,  the  people  were  sum- 
moned to  the  palace  by  the  firing  of  cannon.  An 
immense  number  assembled,  and  the  royal  decision 
as  to  the  captives  was  announced.  Eleven  were  con- 
demned to  be  executed,  but  of  these  two  had  escaped. 
The  remaining  nine  were  ordered  to  be  taken  and 
exhibited  before  Mr.  Griffith's  house,  then  to  be  con- 
veyed to  a  rugged  hill,  nearly  opposite  the  palace,  and 


84      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

put  to  death.  The  captives  were  too  weak  to  walk,  so 
they  were  tied  to  poles  and  carried  to  the  house  of 
their  former  pastor;  but  all  were  calm,  and  engaged  in 
prayer.  Serenity  and  joy  were  on  all  their  coun- 
tenances. One  young  woman  testified  of  Christ  to 
the  guards  and  executioners  as  they  carried  her  along. 

When  the  fatal  spot  was  reached  they  all  assumed  the 
attitude  of  prayer,  and  were  at  once  speared.  The 
heads  of  Paul  and  Joshua  were  struck  off  and  elevated 
on  poles  as  a  warning  to  the  people  not  to  forsake 
the  idols  of  the  land.  The  queen  sent  word  that  for 
aiding  the  escape  of  the  offenders  Mr.  Griffiths  must 
pay  fines  amounting  to  about  thirty  pounds.  He  was 
also  commanded  to  leave  Antananarivo  in  a  fort- 
night, and  to  return  at  his  peril.  He  was  in  great 
danger  for  the  short  time  he  remained,  and  finally 
left  Madagascar  on  the  ist  of  September,  1840. 

The  next  to  gain  a  martyr's  crown  were  two 
Christians  who  had  gone  amongst  the  Sakalavas  in 
order  to  draw  them  into  the  fold  of  Christ.  On 
returning  sometime  afterwards  to  the  capital,  they 
were  arrested  and  tortured  in  order  to  induce  them  to 
betray  their  associates.  When  they  were  put  on  their 
trial,  they  declared  that  they  had  gone  voluntarily  to 
the  Sakalavas  to  teach  them  the  Word  of  God,  that 
thereby  these  people  might  be  led  to  give  up  their 
habits  of  plunder  and  violence,  and  lead  good  and 
happy  lives.  Sentence  of  death  was  passed  upon 
them,  and  they  were  sent  to  their  native  place  to 
undergo  their  execution.  They  met  their  end  with 
great  fortitude  and  joy,  exclaiming  to  their  fellow- 
believers  :  "  Farewell,  beloved  friends,  God  will  cause 
us  this  day  to  meet  with  Him  in  paradise."     After 


THE   NOBLE   ARMY   OF    MARTYRS.  85 

being  speared,  their  heads  were  struck  off  and  set  on 
poles  in  a  piibHc  place  as  a  warning  to  the  people. 

A  more  cruel  outrage  still  was  perpetrated  in  about 
three  months  after  the  deaths  of  these  men.  One 
morning  a  paper  was  found  fastened  on  the  wall  of  a 
house  in  Antananarivo.  It  was  a  leaf  from  St. 
Matthew's  Gospel  with  the  words  underlined  :  "  Woe 
unto  you  scribes  and  pharisees,  hypocrites,  for  ye  shut 
up  the  kingdom  of  heaven  against  men,  for  ye  neither 
go  in  yourselves,  neither  suffer  ye  them  that  are  enter- 
ing to  go  in."  The  queen  was  told  of  the  occurrence, 
and  she  sent  forth  an  announcement  that  the  person 
guilty  of  the  act  must  accuse  himself  within  four  days, 
or  if  he  were  afterwards  found  out,  he  should  be  cut 
into  pieces  as  small  as  bullets.  No  one  answered  the 
summons,  and  at  the  end  of  the  period  named,  Raharo, 
one  of  the  head  teachers  in  the  Government  schools 
and  a  number  of  others,  were  arrested.  Raharo  was 
forced  to  undergo  the  tangena  ordeal,  and  died  from 
its  effects.  Two  others  of  those  arrested  were  executed, 
and  their  bodies  chopped  as  fine  as  mincemeat  and 
burned.  No  evidence  was  offered  to  prove  that  any 
of  these  had  committed  the  offence  which  had  so 
enraged  Ranavalona.  They  were  reputed  to  be  Christ- 
ians, and  they  could  read  and  write.  This  was  quite 
sufficient  transgression  in  the  eyes  of  their  accusers. 

In  1843  the  Mission  lost  one  of  its  most  valuable 
friends  in  the  death  of  Rev.  David  Johns.  He  had  been 
engaged  in  the  work  of  promoting  the  evangelisation 
of  the  natives  for  about  eighteen  years.  Although  he 
had  been  expelled  by  the  queen  two  years  before  his 
death,  he  had  made  several  voyages  between  Mada- 
gascar and  Mauritius,  trying  with  all  his  power  to 


86      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

sustain  the  faith  of  the  persecuted  flock,  helping  the 
fugitives  to  make  their  escape  from  the  unfriendly 
shore,  and  providing  them  with  shelter  when  they 
needed  it.  He  had  been  of  signal  service  to  the 
Mission  in  its  best  days  as  a  preacher  and  pastor,  and 
had  also  written  several  hymns  in  the  native  language, 
which  are  still  being  sung  in  the  public  services ;  and 
above  all  he  had  contributed  to  the  Christian  litera- 
ture of  the  Malagasy  a  translation  of  the  Pilgrim's 
Progress,  which  tended  greatly  to  console  and  cheer  the 
Christians  in  their  afflictions.  He  was  a  man  of  loving 
and  gentle  spirit,untiring  in  hisenthusiasm  for  the  great 
work  to  which  he  had  consecrated  his  life.  He  was 
engaged  in  endeavouring  to  aid  the  escape  of  some 
Christian  fugitives  to  the  island  of  Nosy  Be  when  he 
was  struck  down  by  fever  and  died  at  the  age  of  fifty, 
a  martyr  to  the  cause  he  loved  so  well.  An  appro- 
priate monument  was  erected  to  his  memory  at  Nosy 
Be  by  Sir  John  Marshall,  commander  of  H.M.S.  Isis. 

During  the  persecution,  which  lasted  from  1839  to 
1843,  the  Christians  were  not  without  their  encourage- 
ments and  consolations.  The  splendid  testimony 
borne  by  the  martyrs  of  the  sufficiency  of  Divine 
Grace  to  sustain  them  in  the  darkest  hour,  deeply 
impressed  the  hearts  of  the  spectators  who  gathered 
at  the  executions,  and  even  of  the  soldiers  who  carried 
out  the  fatal  sentence.  There  were  continual  though 
secret  accessions  to  the  Church,  and  to  the  honour  of 
the  members  be  it  recorded  that  they  faithfully  stood 
by  each  other  under  the  severest  strain,  and  that  no 
cruelty  or  torture  could  force  them  to  betray  their 
fellows.  Thus  the  wrath  of  man  was  turned  to  the 
praise  of  Him  in  whose  hand  are  the  hearts  of  men. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE  FIRE  OF   SUCCESSIVE  PERSECUTIONS. 

'.  Not  first  the  bright  and  after  that  the  dark, 
Bat  first  the  dark  and  after  that  the  bright ; 
First  the  thick  clottd  and  then  the  rambow  s  arc 
First  the  dark  grave,  then  resurrection  light.  -Bo,tar. 

rr^HERE  was  a  lull  in  the  cruel  P--="'i°"  °[  *« 
I        Christians  of  Madagascar  from  1843  to  1849- 
1       Very  difficult  and  threatening   disputes  arose 
between    the    queen    and    both    France    and 
England,  which  fully  engaged  the  attention  of  the 
Government.     This  period  of  respite  was  of  very  grea 
advantage  to  the  Christians,  and  while  .    lasted,  the 
Gospel  spread  rapidly.     Help  came  also  from  a  most 
unexpect'ed  quarter.     A  military  officer  who  was  fre- 
quently engaged  at  the  palace,  .n  h,s  journeys  to  and 
?ro  sometimes  took  with  him  his  nephew  who  was  a 
Christian.     An  acquaintance  sprang  up  between  this 
young  man  and  the  son   of   Ranavalona,  the   he  r- 
apparent  to  the  throne,  then  sixteen  years  of  age.     In 
Z  intercourse  which  ensued,  the  Christian  rehg.on 
became   a  frequent   topic   of    conversation    between 

07 


88      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

these  two,  and  Rakatond-radama,  or  Radama  the 
young,  became  deeply  interested  in  the  subject.  He 
was  of  a  kind  and  gentle  spirit — as  complete  a  con- 
trast as  could  be  to  his  ferocious  mother. 

About  this  time  a  young  man  named  Ramaka, 
or,  as  he  afterwards  was  called,  Rasalasala,  "  the 
bold  one,"  rose  up  as  a  mighty  preacher  of  the 
Gospel.  He  had  been  converted  and  baptised  years 
before,  and  now,  when  the  Church  was  deprived 
of  its  foreign  pastors,  the  Spirit  of  God  came  upon 
him  in  great  power,  and  he  boldly  preached  to  large 
assemblies  of  his  countrymen.  The  young  prince 
was  led  by  his  friend  to  go  and  listen  to  this  man. 
He  was  greatly  impressed,  and  went  to  hear  the 
preacher  repeatedly.  Then  he  invited  some  of 
the  Christians  to  his  own  house  to  instruct  him  in 
the  Scriptures  and  pray  with  him.  He  was  deeply 
moved  with  the  wrongs  and  sufferings  of  the  followers 
of  Christ,  and  he  felt  constrained  to  befriend  them  in 
every  possible  way.  Prince  Rakatond  had  a  cousin, 
called  Prince  Ramonja,  the  son  of  his  mother's  eldest 
sister.  He  was  older  than  Rakatond,  but  very  similar 
in  disposition,  and  was  regarded  with  much  favour  by 
the  queen.  He  also  was  led  to  attend  the  meetings 
of  the  Christians,  and  became  a  convert  to  their  teach- 
ing. He  joined  his  young  cousin  in  his  friendship 
towards  them,  and  opened  his  house  for  worship. 

The  nephew  of  the  Prime  Minister  joined  the  Church 
also,  so  that  as  it  was  in  the  days  of  St.  Paul,  so  now 
there  were  to  be  found,  even  in  the  days  of  trial,  saints 
in  "  Caesar's  household."  The  conversion  of  this 
young  man  was  remarkable.  The  prime  minister 
sent  him  to  the  Christian  meetings  to  obtain  the  names 


THE   FIRE   OF   SUCCESSIVE   PERSECUTIONS.       89 

of  all  those  present.  He  went  and  advised  them  at 
once  to  disperse,  as  mischief  was  being  determined 
against  them.  When  he  was  asked  for  the  list  of 
names  he  answered :  "  There  is  none."  His  uncle 
denounced  him  as  a  Christian  and  asserted  he  must 
lose  his  head.  The  young  man  at  once  declared 
himself.  He  said  :  "  I  am  a  Christian,  you  can  put 
me  to  death,  but  I  must  pray."  The  uncle  was  over- 
come by  his  boldness  and  by  the  play  of  affection  and 
replied  :  "  No,  you  shall  not  die."  The  young  man 
might  be  assassinated  but  could  not  be  intimidated. 
These  wonderful  events  no  doubt  contributed  to  keep 
down  the  persecuting  spirit  for  a  time. 

In  the  interval  the  Christians  were  very  active. 
Those  who  were  hiding  in  the  hilly  districts  were 
resorted  to  by  many  to  be  instructed  in  the  things  of 
God,  and  numerous  converts  were  made.  Some  who 
were  still  in  chains  and  imprisoned  in  their  own  houses 
were  visited  by  many  friends,  and  they  constantly  read 
and  expounded  the  Scriptures,  and  engaged  in  worship 
in  their  presence.  Numbers  even  of  their  guards  were 
converted,  and  through  their  intercession  the  fetters 
on  the  limbs  of  the  prisoners  were  relaxed  and  then 
cast  off  altogether.  These  prisoners  employed  much 
of  their  time  in  copying  portions  of  the  Bible,  and  in 
repairing  torn  fragments  which  they  had  been  able  to 
conceal  and  preserve.  In  the  Museum  of  the  London 
Missionary  Society  are  exhibited  some  of  these 
fragments.  Many  of  them  are  sewn  together  with 
fibres  of  bark ;  others  have  strips  of  paper  gummed 
along  the  margins,  and  numbers  of  them  are  stained 
and  discoloured  by  having  been  buried  in  the  ground, 
or  hidden  in  the  thatch  of  the  roof,  or  the  hole  in  the 


90      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

wall.  In  this  period  of  respite,  by  the  faith  and 
devotion  of  the  saints,  the  Word  of  the  Lord  grew 
mightily  and  prevailed. 

A  worse  storm-cloud  still  gathered  and  burst 
upon  the  Malagasy  Church  in  the  early  part  of 
1849.  The  queen  was  enraged  to  find  that  her 
kingdom,  in  spite  of  edicts,  of  bloodshed  and  murders, 
was  rapidly  becoming  Christian.  She  therefore 
resolved  to  have  recourse  to  severer  measures,  and 
to  utterly  exterminate  the  Gospel.  In  this  determina- 
tion she  was  encouraged  by  Ramboasalama,  the  cousin 
of  Rakatond,  and  his  rival  claimant  to  the  throne. 
In  February  a  popular  assembly  was  held,  and  in  a 
royal  message  Ranavalona  demanded  to  know  why 
her  subjects  had  not  given  up  praying,  in  view  of 
her  commands  and  the  penalties  which  had  been  de- 
nounced against  any  who  forsook  the  idols  of  the 
country.  The  Christians  firmly  but  respectfully 
answered  that  they  could  not  give  up  praying — that 
their  prayers  brought  not  ill  but  good  to  the  queen 
and  her  kingdom  and  to  themselves. 

The  storm  broke  by  two  houses  belonging  to 
Prince  Ramonja,  which  had  been  used  as  gather- 
ing places  by  the  Christians,  being  demolished, 
and  all  the  materials  carried  away  by  the  wreckers. 
In  a  week  an  order  was  issued  that  all  Christians 
should  accuse  themselves  in  their  own  districts.  The 
opportunity  for  self-accusation  was  afforded  that  a 
lighter  punishment  than  death  might  be  inflicted  on 
the  less  guilty  ones.  The  commissioners  in  each 
district  sought  to  persuade  the  people  to  take  an  oath 
recognising  the  idols  and  invoking  curses  on  them- 
selves if  they  abandoned  them,  but  they  were  con- 


THE   FIRE   OF   SUCCESSIVE   TERSECUTIONS.       9 1 

fronted  everywhere  by  a  bold  and  noble  firmness  on 
the  part  of  the  persecuted.  At  Vonizongo,  a  woman 
stood  forth  before  the  judge,  and  said  :  "I  do  not 
pray  to  wood  and  stones,  nor  to  the  mountains.  I 
pray  to  God  alone,  for  He  is  great."  The  officers 
cried:  "Wretch!  will  you  not  pray  to  the  spirits  of 
your  ancestors  and  to  the  idols  ? "  She  answered  : 
"  I  cannot  pray  to  these  ;  it  is  God  alone  that  I  serve." 
Another  Christian  testified  in  like  words,  adding : 
"  For  He  alone  is  worthy  to  receive  honour  and  praise." 

A  nobleman,  descended  from  a  former  king,  when 
brought  before  the  judges  witnessed  for  God  so  boldly 
that  they  advised  that  public  examinations  of  the 
offender  should  cease,  as  his  heroism  drew  forth  much 
admiration  from  the  bystanders.  This  man,  Rainitraho 
by  name,  was  burnt  to  death,  and  amidst  the  flames 
bore  clear  testimony  for  Jesus.  At  a  place  called 
Analakely,  a  Christian  was  asked  to  take  the  oath  to 
the  idols,  and  replied  :  "  I  shall  not  pray  to  wood  and 
stone.  Steps  are  made  of  stone,  and  houses  are  made 
of  wood,  and  the  idols  are  only  cuttings  of  wood. 
Why  should  I  worship  them  ?  Unto  God  alone  should 
men  offer  prayer  and  worship."  One  of  the  accused 
women  on  being  examined  very  strongly  maintained 
her  profession,  and  said  :  "  As  to  swearing  by  the 
queen  or  by  one's  father  or  brother,  a  lie  is  a  lie  still, 
whether  you  swear  it  or  not.  I  believe  in  God  and 
put  my  trust  in  Jesus  Christ,  the  Saviour  and  Redeemer 
of  all  that  believe  in  Him."  This  woman,  with  a 
number  of  others,  was  reserved  in  irons  to  ascertain 
the  queen's  decision  as  to  her  fate. 

A  young  lady  named  Ranivo,  a  special  favourite 
with    Ranavalona,    and    who   was   widely   respected, 


92      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

underwent  a  rigid  examination  by  the  judges.  She 
said  :  "  I  cannot  serve  the  idols.  God  only  will  I 
serve  while  life  shall  last,  for  He  has  given  me  life 
and  spirit,  a  higher  spiritual  life  to  worship  Him,  and 
for  that  reason  I  will  worship  Him  alone."  The 
officer  replied :  "  Perhaps  you  are  ill,  or  suffering 
from  some  charm,  or  deranged  in  your  mind ;  consider 
well  lest  the  queen  condemn  you,  and  you  suffer  to  no 
purpose."  She  answered  :  "  I  am  not  deranged,  nor 
am  I  ill ;  God  has  given  me  a  spirit  to  worship  Him, 
and  I  should  be  filled  with  dread  were  I  to  cease  to 
pray  unto  Him."     Then  the  order  came,  "  Bind  her." 

So  also  many  others  bore  similar  brave  testimony 
and  the  captives  were  remanded  till  the  morrow,  being 
pronounced  by  the  officers,  "  stubborn  and  obstinate 
people."  They  were  heavily  ironed  and  put  in  prison 
until  their  punishment  was  fixed. 

The  Christians  who  were  still  free  met  at  midnight 
and  remained  in  fervent  prayer  until  at  break  of  day 
the  booming  of  cannon  and  the  rolls  of  musketry 
summoned  the  people  in  multitudes  to  hear  the  royal 
message.  The  prisoners,  eighteen  in  number,  were 
brought  forth  and  were  ranged  on  the  plain  in  groups, 
according  to  the  measure  of  their  supposed  guilt. 
They  presented  a  pitiable  sight, 

"  Not  as  the  conqueror  comes, 
They  the  true  hearted  came." 

Each  man  and  woman  was  tied  by  cords  to  two 
poles  ;  they  were  wrapped  in  coarse,  ragged  and  dirty 
matting,  rags  being  thrust  into  their  mouths  to  prevent 
them  witnessing  for  Christ.  Yet  those  eighteen  were 
conquerors  of  the  truest  kind.  Brave  John  Lambert, 
the  English  martyr,  said  as  he  was  being  led  to  the 


THE   FIRE   OF   SUCCESSIVE   PERSECUTIONS.       93 

stake :  "  Crowns  are  distributed  to-day,  and  I  go  to 
receive  mine."  This  saintly  group  would  soon  be 
triumphant  over  human  malice  and  persecuting  rage  ; 
the  sharpness  of  death  would  quickly  bring  to  them 
"  glory,  honour,  immortality  and  eternal  life." 

Bands  of  music,  regiments  of  soldiers,  flags  and 
standards  all  gave  pomp  and  importance  to  the 
occasion,  and  amidst  solemn  silence  the  decision  of  the 
queen  was  announced.  Four  of  the  prisoners  who 
belonged  to  the  nobility,  two  being  husband  and  wife, 
were  condemned  to  be  consumed  by  fire  ;  the  remain- 
ing fourteen  were  to  be  hurled  from  a  lofty  rock  at 
Ampamarinana,  to  the  west  of  the  palace,  and  their 
families  sold  into  perpetual  slavery. 

In  addition  to  these  eighteen,  one  hundred  and 
seventeen  were  consigned  to  hard  labour  and  chains 
for  life,  with  public  flogging  added  for  one  hundred 
and  five  of  them.  Sixty-four  were  fined  heavily, 
indeed  ruinously,  while  lighter  fines  were  imposed  on 
sixteen  hundred  and  forty-three  who  were  guilty  of 
simply  attending  public  worship.  All  the  officers  of 
the  army  or  in  the  civil  service  who  were  involved  in 
the  charges  were  deprived  of  office  or  degraded  in 
rank.  It  is  supposed  that  nearly  three  thousand  were 
affected  by  these  sentences.  Prince  Ramonja  was 
among  those  thus  degraded.  The  prince  royal  was 
accused  of  attending  Divine  worship,  but  the  queen 
was  a  mother  in  feeling  and  she  saved  him  from 
any  persecution,  saying :  "  Rakatond  is  young ;  he 
does  not  know  what  is  proper  and  he  is  my  only  son." 

When  the  sentences  were  all  pronounced  a  terrific 
noise  was  kept  up  by  beating  drums,  large  and  small, 
to  terrify  the  prisoners.    But  they  failed  in  their  object. 


94      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

The  Christians  were  quite  calm.  The  gags  had  been 
removed  from  their  mouths  and  they  sang  a  hymn  con- 
cerning the  heavenly  land  they  were  so  soon  to  enter. 
The  four  nobles  were  conveyed  to  the  top  of  a  high 
hill  called  Faravohitra.  As  they  were  taken  they  sang 
the  hymn,  "  Going  home  to  God,"  and  so  refuted  the 
prediction  of  one  of  their  persecutors  that  when  death 
came  they  would  be  as  much  afraid  of  it  as  others. 

When  the  selected  place  was  reached  a  large  pile 
of  wood  was  put  up  and  they  were  fastened  to 
stakes.  The  fire  was  kindled,  and  as  the  flames 
rose  round  them  they  lifted  up  their  voices  in  songs  of 
praise,  shouting  in  their  ecstasy,  "  Lord  Jesus,  receive 
our  spirits."  "  Lay  not  this  sin  to  their  charge." 
"  His  name.  His  praise,  shall  endure  for  ever  and  ever." 
Showers  of  rain  came  and  put  out  the  flames.  The 
fires  were  rekindled  more  than  once,  and  while  the 
sufferers  waited  for  their  summons  a  glorious  three- 
fold rainbow  arched  the  heavens,  one  end  resting  on 
the  spot  where  the  martyrs  stood.  The  spectators 
were  appalled  at  the  sight,  and  fled  in  terror,  believing 
it  to  be  a  sign  of  heaven's  favour  to  the  dying  ones. 
Prayers  and  praises  to  God  rose  as  long  as  a  spark 
of  life  continued  in  the  martyrs,  and  then  they  gently 
departed  to  the  world  where  "  there  is  no  more  pain." 

The  fourteen  condemned  ones  who  now  remained 
were  led  to  the  top  of  "  The  Rock  of  Hurling,"  as  it 
has  since  been  called.  It  has  been  often  compared  to 
the  Tarpeian  Rock  of  Rome  ;  but  no  scene  ever  took 
place  on  that  spot  at  all  comparable  in  moral  gran- 
deur with  what  transpired  on  this  high  precipice.  It 
forms  part  of  the  bold  cliffs  by  which  the  western  side 
of  the  capital  descends  to  the  plain.    The  narrow  plat- 


THE   FIRE   OF   SUCCESSIVE   PERSECUTIONS.       95 

form  of  rock  at  the  top  is  not  far  from  the  royal  palace. 
The  height,  from  the  top  to  the  plain  below,  is  about 
1 50  feet.  The  fourteen  who  were  to  suffer,  and  Ranivo, 
the  young  woman    already   referred   to,  wrapped  in 


"THE    ROCK    OF    HURLING." 

matting,  were  firmly  bound  with  ropes  and  were 
lowered  a  short  distance  over  the  edge  of  the  rock. 
It  was  expected  that  at  this  point  their  courage  would 
fail  and  they  would  recant.  They  were  asked  if  they 
would  cease  to  pray,  and  each  firmly  answered  "  No." 


g6      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

Then  the  rope  by  which  they  were  suspended  was  cut ; 
they  fell  about  sixty  feet  on  a  projecting  ledge  and 
rebounded  and  fell  among  broken  masses  of  rock  into 
the  plain  below.  One  of  the  brave  sufferers  begged, 
on  the  edge  of  the  rock,  to  be  allowed  to  breathe  a 
short  prayer.  His  request  was  granted  and  he  prayed 
aloud  fervently;  then  he  rose  from  his  knees  and 
addressed  the  people  with  great  power,  until  they  were 
amazed,  and  many  of  them  overcome  with  awe.  Then 
he  was  hurled  over  the  edge  and  was  heard  singing  as 
his  body  fell  down  the  steep  decline. 

By  order  of  the  queen,  Ranivo  was  stationed  where 
she  could  see  her  friends  fall.  She  was  then  asked 
whether  she  would  worship  the  idols  and  save  her  life. 
She  refused,  and  begged  that  she  might  go  with  her 
friends  to  heaven.  An  officer  struck  her  on  the  head, 
saying  :  "  You  are  a  fool ;  you  are  mad."  A  message 
was  sent  to  the  queen  that  she  was  insane,  and 
should  be  put  in  safe  keeping. 

The  bodies  of  the  sufferers  were  gathered  up,  and 
dragged  to  the  spot  where  the  nobles  had  been  burnt; 
a  great  fire  was  kindled,  and  the  remains  were  cast 
into  the  flames.  The  lurid  glare  was  watched  from 
the  windows  of  the  palace,  and  by  multitudes  of  by- 
standers, who  were  intended  to  be  intimidated  by  the 
weird  sight  This  day — the  28th  of  March,  1849 — 
was  the  most  glorious  one  which  ever  dawned  in 
Madagascar ;  the  crowds  assembled  were  deeply  im- 
pressed. The  cruelty  of  the  persecutors  was  defeating 
its  own  purpose;  the  natives  were  becoming  convinced 
that  there  was  a  power  in  Christianity  to  uphold  the 
heart  of  man  in  the  severest  trial  and  torture,  and 
many  of  them  declared  that  it  must  be  Divine. 


THE   FIRE   O?^   SUCCESSIVE   PERSECUTIONS.        97 

So  the  Word  of  the  Lord  had  free  course,  and  was 
glorified  ;  converts  were  gathered,  believers  were 
multiplied,  and  in  the  capital  seven  secret  meetings 
for  worship  were  held,  and  sixty-eight  members  in 
one  church  alone  celebrated  regularly  each  month  the 
Supper  of  the  Lord. 

Prince  Ramonja  was  treated  with  great  hardship. 
He  was  reduced  to  the  rank  of  a  common  soldier,  and 
allowed  only  the  scantiest  clothing.  His  attached 
friend  Prince  Rakatond  tried  to  comfort  him,  visiting 
him  frequently,  weeping  with  him,  and  sending  him 
food  from  his  own  house.  The  health  of  Ramonja 
suffered  severely,  and  he  was  an  invalid  for  the  rest  of 
his  life,  but  he  ever  remained  a  firm  friend  and  a 
prudent  counsellor  of  the  followers  of  Jesus. 

A  large  number  of  the  other  Christians  who  had 
been  fined  were  sent  as  convicts  to  work  in  the  quarries 
of  Mantasoa,  where  a  large  building  was  in  course  of 
erection.  They  were  kept  in  the  poorest  way,  and 
their  tasks  made  cruelly  heavy.  When  the  work  of 
building  was  finished,  they  were  made  to  drag  heavy 
logs  and  beams  of  timber  from  the  forest.  Thus  they 
were  punished  till  1852  when  Prince  Ramboasalama 
and  the  chief  persecutors  proposed  to  sentence  them 
for  a  longer  term  to  the  same  drudgery.  But  the 
prince  royal  and  others  pleaded  for  them  and  they  were 
released.  A  new  commander-in-chief  who  had  been 
appointed  boldly  addressed  the  queen  on  their  behalf, 
and  said:  "They  have  suffered  twice  the  punishment  to 
which  they  were  sentenced,  why  should  they  be  sen- 
tenced again  ?     The  thunderbolt  never  strikes  twice." 

After  his  release  Prince  Ramonja  became  an  officer 
in    the   palace.      He    attended    the   meetings  of  the 

G 


98      MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

Christians,  and  even  spoke  to  the  queen  and  tHe 
members  of  the  royal  family  about  the  Gospel.  The 
queen's  affection  for  her  sister,  the  mother  of 
Ramonja,  was  his  protection  against  a  new  prosecution. 
The  emissaries  of  the  Government  kept  up  an  unremit- 
ting search  for  any  who  continued  to  read  the  Bible 
or  meet  together  for  prayer.  Prince  Rakatond  and 
his  cousin  sought  to  shelter  and  befriend  the  poor 
believers,  who  were  being  harried  ;  they  supplied  them 
freely  with  money  for  their  needs,  and  on  one  occasion 
Rakatond  went  to  a  place  where  a  number  of  them 
were  in  confinement  and  loosed  their  bonds,  telling 
their  keeper  to  say,  if  he  were  called  to  account  for 
them,  that  he  had  released  them.  The  secret  meetings 
for  prayer  in  the  city  were  sometimes  attended  by 
those  who  had  been  condemned  to  wear  irons  for  life, 
and  it  was  a  pathetic  sight  to  see  them,  with  a  fetter 
round  the  neck  and  chains  fastened  from  it  to  the 
wrists,  and  with  a  fetter  round  the  waist  and  chains 
from  it  to  the  feet,  struggling  along  under  the  great 
weight.  The  believers  throughout  the  country  were 
numbered  by  thousands  and  were  continually  receiv- 
ing additions. 

The  partial  respite  from  persecution  from  1852  to 
the  last  and  greatest  trial  the  Church  of  Madagascar 
was  subjected  to  was  occasioned  partly  by  the  death 
of  Rainiharo,  the  prime  minister,  who  had  largely 
incited  the  queen  in  her  conduct,  and  who  had  been 
the  bitterest  of  all  the  enemies  of  the  Christians.  He 
was  succeeded  by  his  son,  who  was  an  intimate  friend 
of  the  young  prince  royal,  and  who  did  not  inherit  the 
persecuting  spirit  of  his  father.  Prince  Rakatond 
became  secretary  of  state,  and  an  officer  of  the  palace. 


THE   FIRE   OF   SUCCESSIVE   PERSECUTIONS. 


99 


His  duty  it  was  to  publish  the  royal  edicts,  and  it  was 
rumoured  that  his  mother  was  desirous  of  abdicating 
in  his  favour.  In  consequence  of  these  changes  there 
was  a  palpable  alteration  for  the  better  in  the 
treatment  of  the  Christians.     The  London  Missionary 


REV.    WILLIAM    ELLIS. 


Society  encouraged  by  these  favourable  tidings  felt  that 
it  might  safely  send  a  commissioner  to  visit  the  island, 
for  the  purposes  of  investigation  and  of  strengthening 
the  hands  of  the  Christians.  The  Rev.  William  Ellis 
was   intrusted   with  the  important  work.     No   more 


lOO   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

suitable  man  could  have  been  appointed.  He  began 
his  missionary  life  in  1816,  accompanying  the  well- 
known  Rev.  John  Williams  to  the  South  Sea  Islands, 
where  he  spent  some  years  of  faithful  service,  and  then 
became  foreign  secretary  to  the  Society.  He  had 
gathered  up  an  immense  quantity  of  information  about 
the  island  of  Madagascar,and  of  course  knew  intimately 
everything  about  the  Mission.  He  had  published 
"  The  History  of  Madagascar,"  in  two  volumes,  which 
is  the  most  full  and  correct  account  yet  supplied  of 
the  country,  and  from  which  all  subsequent  writers 
on  the  subject  have  drawn  much  of  their  information. 

Mr.  Ellis  was  therefore  well  prepared  beforehand 
for  the  mission  to  which  he  was  appointed.  He 
was  accompanied  by  Mr.  Cameron,  and  they  arrived 
at  Tamatave  in  July,  1853.  They  had  a  cordial 
reception  from  the  officers  of  that  port  and  Mr.  Ellis 
forwarded  a  letter  to  the  queen  seeking  permission  to 
come  up  to  the  capital.  In  three  weeks  a  reply  was 
received  to  the  effect  that  the  Government  was  so 
engaged  with  pressing  business  that  he  could  not 
be  received,  and  advising  his  return  lest  he  should 
become  a  victim  of  the  island  fever.  This  was  a  polite 
notice  to  quit,  but  in  the  meantime  Mr.  Ellis  had 
gathered  much  information  as  to  the  condition  of  the 
churches.  He  received  a  letter  from  Prince  Ramonja, 
asking  for  copies  of  the  Bible,  stating  also  that  he  held 
regular  meetings  for  worship  in  his  apartments  in  the 
court  of  the  palace,  and  that  the  band  played  at  the 
same  time  in  order  that  they  might  not  be  heard  by 
the  queen  or  her  emissaries. 

In  June  of  1854  Mr.  Ellis  made  another  trip  from 
Mauritius  to  Tamatave,   and   again   sought  leave  to 


THE   FIRE   OF   SUCCESSIVE   PERSECUTIONS.       IO3 

visit  Antananarivo.  But  the  cholera  was  raging 
fiercely  at  Mauritius,  and  the  Malagasy  Government 
was  justly  alarmed  concerning  this  awful  disease.  He 
was  not  permitted  to  proceed  farther  than  the  coast, 
but  during  the  few  weeks  he  lingered  there  he  had 
almost  daily  intercourse  with  Christians,  who  came 
from  all  the  districts  around  to  visit  him  and  have 
spiritual  intercourse.  He  took  down  full  accounts  of 
the  bloody  trials  to  which  the  Church  had  been 
subjected  during  the  years  of  persecution,  and  he  con- 
versed with  many  who  had  suffered  fines  and  imprison- 
ment for  their  attachment  to  their  beliefs.  The 
officers  who  had  been  forced  to  labour  in  the  quarries 
and  forests  of  Mantasoa  showed  him  the  wounds  and 
bruises,  "  marks  of  the  Lord  Jesus,"  which  they  had 
received  while  engaged  in  their  terrible  slavery. 

The  great  want  of  the  churches  was  copies  of  the 
Bible.  The  officers  at  Tamatave  had  orders  to  seize 
all  books  which  were  brought  into  the  country. 
Mr.  Ellis,  in  going  to  and  from  his  vessel  and  the 
shore,  used  to  conceal  about  his  person  as  many 
copies  as  he  could.  When  his  boat  touched  the 
beach  he  had  to  leap  from  its  bow  to  the  land,  with 
several  custom-house  officers  standing  around,  and 
he  trembled  lest  a  volume  should  be  jerked  to  the 
ground,  and  very  thankful  he  was  when  he  could  get 
to  his  lodging  and  unload  his  treasures  in  safety.  In 
this  way  he  was  able  during  successive  visits  to  dis- 
tribute 1500  Bibles,  Testaments,  and  Psalms  to  the 
people  who  hungered  for  the  Word  of  God. 

Having  done  what  he  could,  Mr.  Ellis  left  Mada- 
gascar in  September,  and  after  visiting  the  stations  of 
the  South  African  Mission,  arrived  safely  in  London. 


I04   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

After  leaving  the  island,  Mr.  Ellis  received  a  letter 
from  the  Government  stating  that  as  the  cholera  had 
ceased  at  Mauritius,  all  objection  to  him  visiting 
Antananarivo  was  removed.  Therefore  he  paid  a 
third  visit  to  Madagascar,  arriving  at  Tamatave  in 
July,  and  at  the  capital  in  August,  1856. 

At  this  time  there  was  no  active  persecution  being 
carried  out,  but  the  profession  and  practice  of  the 
Christian  religion  was  still  forbidden,  and  every  fort- 
night the  royal  command  that  strict  search  was  to  be 
made  for  those  who  gathered  for  worship,  or  were  in 
the  habit  of  praying  to  God,  was  read  out  in  the  hear- 
ing of  the  people.  Therefore  Mr.  Ellis  was  obliged 
to  use  the  utmost  caution  in  his  intercourse  with  the 
native  members.  At  the  instigation  of  Prince  Rambo- 
asalama,  a  vigilant  watch  was  kept,  and  the  names 
recorded  of  all  Christians  who  were  seen  to  visit  him. 
He  took  every  opportunity  of  encouraging  the  hearts 
of  the  faithful,  and  assured  them  of  the  deepest 
sympathy  and  prayers  of  those  in  England  who  had 
first  sent  them  the  Gospel.  He  relieved  those  who 
were  in  deep  poverty,  and  scattered  copies  of  the 
sacred  books  wherever  he  could  do  so  with  safety. 
He  received  every  mark  of  outward  courtesy  from 
the  queen  and  her  officers,  but  there  is  no  doubt  that 
they  were  more  desirous  to  secure  the  goodwill  of  an 
English  visitor  than  to  treat  with  politeness  a 
missionary  of  the  Cross.  He  found  that  it  would  be 
quite  impolitic  to  ask  for  the  repeal  of  the  intolerant 
edicts  against  Christianity,  and  after  remaining  a 
month  in  the  capital,  he  received  notice  to  quit  in  the 
form  of  a  civil  intimation  that  as  the  rainy  season 
was  approaching  it  would  not  be  well  for  him  to  pro- 


THE   FIRE   OF   SUCCESSIVE   PERSECUTIONS.       105 

long  his  visit.  All  that  he  had  hoped  for  had  not  been 
accomplished  by  his  visit,  but  good  undoubtedly  had 
been  done.  He  had  gathered  much  valuable  infor- 
mation, given  useful  counsel,  and  inspired  the  hearts 
of  many  by  helpful  sympathy.  He  came  back  to 
England  in  1857  with  a  store  of  mission  news  which 
would  do  much  to  stir  the  fervour  and  zeal  of  the 
friends  of  missions  throughout  the  world. 

Mr.  Ellis  had  not  left  Madagascar  more  than  about 
three  months  before  there  broke  out  a  persecution  as 
fierce  and  terrible  as  any  which  had  gone  before.  It 
was  partly  induced  by  political  events.  For  some 
years  there  had  resided  in  the  capital  two  French  gentle- 
men, one  an  extensive  manufacturer  of  glass,  pottery, 
and  other  articles,  and  the  other  a  large  planter  and 
merchant.  They  had  long  been  utterly  disgusted 
with  the  tyranny  and  bloodshed  which  had  marked 
the  reign  of  Ranavalona,  and  conceived  the  project  of 
displacing  her  and  placing  Prince  Rakatond  upon  the 
throne.  The  hope  of  personal  advantage  as  well  as 
the  desire  of  ridding  the  country  of  a  bigoted  tyrant 
actuated  them  in  this  movement. 

Mr.  Lambert,  the  latter  of  these  gentlemen,  went  to 
France  in  order  to  bespeak  help  from  the  Emperor, 
Louis  Napoleon.  In  this  he  failed,  and  returned  to 
Antananarivo.  The  plot  was  found  out,  and  the  queen 
was  so  enraged  that  she  ordered  the  French  gentlemen, 
with  Madame  Ida  Pfeiffer,  the  celebrated  traveller,  who 
was  then  in  the  city,  and  also  two  Jesuit  priests,  who 
were  there  in  disguise,  to  quit  the  country  at  once. 
Then  she  considered  how  she  might  vent  her  passion. 
Nero  gratified  his  cruelty  by  fastening  upon  the  Christ- 
ians of  Rome  the  unfounded  charge  of  having  set  fire 


I06   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

to  that  city,  and  Ranavalona  fixed  upon  the  Christians 
as  being  the  natural  object  of  her  resentment  now. 

There  was  not  the  slightest  ground  for  supposing 
that  the  followers  of  Christ  had  taken  part  in  this  con- 
spiracy. Some  of  them  might  have  heard  of  it,  and 
it  would  not  be  surprising  if  they  had  secretly  hoped 
for  its  success,  but  more  than  this  they  had  not  done. 
The  queen,  however,  desired  a  victim,  the  laws 
against  Christianity  were  still  in  force,  the  Christians 
were  multiplying  in  spite  of  them,  and  therefore  she 
resolved  to  make  one  more  desperate  effort  to  stamp 
them  out.  A  villain,  who  had  professed  to  be  con- 
verted in  order  to  become  acquainted  with  those  who 
assembled  for  worship,  supplied  a  list  of  seventy 
persons  whom  he  averred  to  be  concerned  in  the 
conspiracy,  but  Prince  Rakatond  got  hold  of  it  and 
tore  it  to  pieces.  The  Christians  were  warned  of  the 
storm  which  was  about  to  rage  around  them,  and  fled 
in  large  companies  to  distant  parts  of  the  island. 

An  assembly  of  the  people  was  called  by  the  firing 
of  cannon  on  the  3rd  of  July,  when  it  was  announced 
that  the  queen  had  heard  that  in  and  around  the  city 
there  were  many  Christians.  These  were  ordered  to 
report  themselves  within  fifteen  days  on  pain  of 
death.  Only  a  few  obeyed  the  summons.  Bands  of 
soldiers  went  in  search  of  fugitives,  but  few  were 
captured.  Efforts  were  renewed  repeatedly  to  appre- 
hend them,  and  rewards  were  freely  offered  for  their 
discovery.  The  queen  declared  that  she  would  search 
to  the  bowels  of  the  earth  and  to  the  bottom  of 
lakes  and  rivers  to  find  them.  At  length  about  300 
were  arrested  and  presented  for  trial.  Six  of 
them  were   discovered  hidden  in  a  pit  and  covered 


THE   FIRE   OF   SUCCESSIVE   PERSECUTIONS.      IO7 

with  straw.  The  soldiers  had  searched  for  them  in 
vain,  and  were  leaving  the  place  when  one  heard  a 
faint  coucfh,  and  so  the  search  was  renewed  and  the 
helpless  ones  found.  They  were  bound  and  marched 
to  the  capital,  and  with  them  the  inhabitants  of  the 
village  who  had  befriended  them. 

Prince  Ramonja  and  the  commander-in-chief 
laboured  strenuously  to  restrain  the  tide  of  cruelty 
and  to  alleviate  the  sufferings  of  the  afflicted.  The 
prince  royal  also  saved  many  lives,  and  exerted 
himself  so  much  in  behalf  of  the  prisoners,  that,  but 
for  the  love  Ranavalona  had  for  him,  he  would  himself 
have  been  apprehended  and  punished.  The  charge 
which  was  brought  against  the  Christians  was  not 
that  of  having  aided  in  a  conspiracy,  but  of  praying, 
reading  the  Bible,  and  singing  hymns.  There  was 
no  attempt  to  deny  the  truth  of  these  charges,  nor 
any  shrinking  from  the  consequences  of  them. 

More  than  200  were  condemned  to  various  punish- 
ments. Those  who  were  most  signalised  by  their  use- 
fulness, piety,  and  ability,  were  to  bear  testimony  for 
Christ  by  suffering  death  for  His  sake.  A  new  punish- 
ment in  Madagascar  was  devised  to  make  their  end 
more  terrible,  so  as  to  operate  as  a  deterrent  on  the 
minds  of  others.  Fourteen  were  stoned  on  one  day  at 
Fiadana,  about  a  mile  from  Ambohipotsy,  and  others 
endured  the  same  punishment  on  other  days.  After 
being  stoned,  their  heads  were  severed  from  their 
bodies  and  fixed  on  poles.  But  in  the  darkness  of 
the  night  attached  friends  stole  quietly  to  the  spot, 
drove  away  the  hungry  dogs  which  had  congregated 
for  a  welcome  meal,  and  gathering  up  the  mangled 
fragments  of  their  beloved  ones  carried  them  off,  that 


I08    MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

with  Christian  rites  they  might  be  laid  in  the  silent 
grave. 

Fifty-seven  or  more  were  chained  together  by  the 
neck  with  heavy  irons  and  driven  to  distant  parts  of 
the  island  where  more  than  half  died  in  their  chains 
after  enduring  indescribable  torture.  A  set  of  irons 
worn  by  one  of  these  Christians  is  in  the  museum  of 
the  London  Missionary  Society,  and  weighs  fifty-six 
pounds.  Fifty  took  the  tangena  water,  eight  of  whom 
died,  and  others  experienced  permanent  injury  from 
the  ordeal.  If  any  of  those  who  were  chained 
together  died,  their  comrades  had  to  drag  the  dead 
bodies  about  with  them  until  they  also  died  from  the 
contamination,  thus  reviving  in  this  other  form  the 
horrors  of  the  early  Christian  martyrdoms.  Some 
were  taken  to  the  "  Rock  of  Hurling,"  and  there  bravely 
suffered  death  for  their  Master.  Many  others  were 
sent  into  slavery  and  only  redeemed  by  ruinous 
sacrifices  on  the  part  of  their  friends,  whilst  a  few  who 
had  received  sentence  of  death  escaped  and  remained 
in  hiding  for  years,  often  suffering  privations  which 
were  almost  worse  than  death  itself. 

This  awful  persecution  was  the  worst  which  had 
been  experienced  by  the  Church  in  respect  of  the 
large  number  of  prominent  members  who  were  cut  off 
by  it,  but  it  was  the  last  convulsive  effort  of  a  dying 
heathenism  to  assert  its  power  against  the  sovreignty 
of  the  Lord  Jesus.  There  was,  in  the  year  i860,  an 
attempt  made  to  raise  the  spirit  of  persecution  once 
more,  but  the  effort  recoiled  upon  the  head  of  the 
party  who  promoted  it.  Thus  the  7'emamder  of  wrath 
was  restrained  by  the  power  of  God,  and  after  about 
eighteen  years  of  intolerance,  bloodshed  and  murder, 


THl,   FIRE   OF   SUCCESSIVE   PERSECUTIONS.       IO9 

the  persecutors  had  to  confess  with  Julian,  the  apostate 
Emperor  of  Rome  :  "  Galilean,  Thou  hast  conquered!" 
The  end  of  the  persecution  left  the  Christians  more 
pure  and  devoted,  more  united  to  each  other  and 
attached  to  Jesus  than  when  it  began,  and,  marvellous 
to  relate,  the  blood  of  the  martyrs  had  become  the 
seed  of  the  Church,  and  the  number  of  believers  had 
steadily  increased  as  the  fiery  trial  had  passed  upon 
them. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


THE   DAWN   OF   FREEDOM   AND    PROSrERITV, 


"  Let  thy  gold  be  cast  in  the  furnace, 
Thy  red  gold  precious  and  bright ; 
Do  not  fear  the  hungry  fire, 
With  its  caverns  of  burning  light  ; 
And  thy  gold  shall  return  more  precious, 
Free  from  every  spot  and  stain  ; 
P'or  gold  must  be  tried  by  fire, 
As  a  heart  must  be  tried  by  pain." — A.  A.  Procter. 

AFTER  the  last  persecution  had  spent  its  force 
the  Christian  Church  in  Madagascar  held  on 
its  perilous  way,  being  still  subject  to  pains 
and  penalties.  Many  of  its  members  were 
kept  in  prison,  or  were  bound  in  chains,  or  hiding 
in  mountains,  dens,  or  caves  of  the  earth.  Numbers 
of  them  must  have  suffered  severe  privations  but  for 
the  generous  help  of  the  Princes  Rakatond  and 
Ramonja,  who  exhausted  all  their  means  to  supply 
them  with  food,  clothes  and  money. 

But  relief  was  at  hand.     After  a  long  dark  night 
the  sky  was  flecked  with  indications  of  dawn.     Early 
in   1 86 1  the  queen's  health  showed  evident  signs  of 
no 


THE   DAWN   OF   FREEDOM   AND    PROSPERITY.       I  I  I 

decline.  So  long  as  she  was  able  to  attend  to  public 
business  her  agents,  headed  by  Prince  Ramboasalama, 
were  eager  to  enforce  the  laws  in  operation  against 
the  Christians,  and  her  spirit  waxed  more  cruel 
towards  the  people  generally.  As  she  became  weaker, 
the  treatment  of  the  Christians  was  milder,  some  of 
the  sentences  passed  upon  them  were  partially  relaxed, 
and  of  those  sold  into  permanent  slavery  many  were 
allowed  to  be  redeemed. 

The  public  mind  became  anxious  concerning 
impending  changes.  Portents  in  the  sky  and  on  the 
island  were  said  to  have  been  observed,  indicating 
that  a  decisive  event  was  about  to  occur.  The  queen, 
probably  feeling  that  her  end  was  approaching,  gave 
herself  to  much  prayer  to  her  idols.  She  sought 
change  of  air,  she  tried  charms  and  took  medicine, 
but  all  in  vain,  she  wasted  still.  Prince  Rakatond, 
his  wife  and  all  the  members  of  the  royal  family  were 
ordered  to  remain  in  the  palace,  and  the  soldiers  on 
guard  were  increased  to  five  hundred,  so  as  to  be  in 
readiness  for  any  emergency. 

On  the  i6th  of  July  Ranavalona  died.  She  was 
scarcely  regretted  by  anyone,  although  a  fortnight  was 
spent  in  funeral  ceremonies.  Then  her  remains  were 
carried  with  solemn  pomp  through  crowds  of  specta- 
tors to  her  sepulchre.  Orders  were  given  as  usual 
that  the  people  must  shave  their  heads,  put  on 
sombre  clothing,  and  discontinue  their  amusements. 
But  there  was  scarcely  any  real  sorrow  manifested. 
Thirty-three  years  she  had  exercised  a  harsh  and 
bigoted  rule  over  her  unhappy  subjects.  For  twenty- 
five  years  she  had  carried  out  a  spirit  of  cruel  intoler- 
ance  towards    the   Christians,   and    had    earned    for 


112    MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

herself  the  title  of  "  the  bloody  Mary  "  of  modern  days. 
Her  death  was,  therefore,  welcomed  by  the  whole 
nation  as  a  relief  from  a  nightmare  which  had  long 
rested  on  the  moral  and  educational  life  of  the  people. 
While  intending  and  endeavouring  to  extirpate 
Christianity  from  her  realm  she  had  been  the  means, 
by  the  overruling  power  of  a  wise  Providence,  of 
purifying,  proving  and  winnowing  the  people  of  God, 
so  that  the  Church  of  the  future  in  Madagascar  might 
be  the  more  powerful  and  glorious. 

Prince  Rakatond  had  long  been  considered  the  heir- 
apparent  to  the  throne,  but,  as  before  mentioned,  he 
had  a  powerful  and  unscrupulous  rival  in  his  cousin 
Prince  Ramboasalama,  the  elder  brother  of  Prince 
Ramonja.  This  ambitious  and  cruel  man  professed  to 
be  willing  to  offer  allegiance  to  Rakatond.  But  he 
had  collected  all  the  friends  and  retainers  he  could 
influence,  and  had  them  under  arms  at  the  time  of 
the  queen's  death,  so  that  there  was  good  reason  to 
anticipate  that  he  meditated  an  attempt  to  seize  the 
crown.  He  was  favoured  by  the  prime  minister  and 
some  of  the  leading  officials,  and  he  might  have 
succeeded  in  such  an  attempt  but  for  the  forethought 
of  the  commander-in-chief  This  able  officer  on  the 
night  before  the  queen's  death  placed  a  cordon  of 
troops  not  only  round  the  royal  palace  but  also  round 
the  palace  of  Ramboasalama.  When  the  queen  died 
he  increased  the  number  and  strength  of  the  guard, 
and  gave  orders  that  no  one  should  be  allowed  to  go 
in  or  pass  out  of  the  palaces.  When  the  queen's 
death  was  announced  to  the  people,  Rakatond  was  at 
the  same  time  proclaimed  as  her  successor,  and  while 
the  army  and  the  populace  were  giving  expression  to 


•'THK  BANISHED  ONES  JOYFULLY  MINGLED  WITH  THEIR  FAMILIES  AGAIN." 

113  H 


THE   DAWN   OF   FREEDOM   AND   PROSPERITY.       II5 

their  joy,  the  rival  claimant  and  his  friends  were 
detained  in  their  own  houses. 

In  a  short  time,  the  whole  of  the  royal  family, 
including  Ramboasalama,  attended  and  took  the  oath 
of  allegiance  to  Rakatond,  who  ascended  the  throne 
under  the  title  of  Radama  II.  The  joy  of  the  people 
of  the  capital  and  the  district  at  his  accession  was 
extreme.  The  Christians  especially  were  over- 
whelmed with  thankfulness.  They  expressed  their 
feelings  in  the  words  of  Scripture  :  "  When  the  Lord 
turned  again  the  captivity  of  Zion  we  were  like  those 
that  dream.  Then  was  our  mouth  filled  with  laughter 
and  our  tongue  with  singing." 

On  the  very  day  of  his  proclamation  Radama 
announced  that  every  man  was  fully  at  liberty  to 
follow  his  own  religious  convictions,  and  that  whether 
a  man  were  heathen,  or  Christian,  or  Mohammedan,  no 
one  was  to  interfere  with  his  opinions.  But  all,  what- 
ever their  religion,  must  obey  the  laws  of  the  nation. 

This  announcement  not  only  gave  relief  to  the 
Christians,  but  also  satisfied  the  heathen,  who,  not 
understanding  the  idea  of  toleration,  had  feared  that 
reprisals  would  be  attempted  for  all  the  wrongs  the 
Christians  had  endured.  Closely  following  this  act 
of  toleration,  steps  were  taken  to  restore  to  comfort 
and  liberty  all  who  had  been  suffering  disabilities  in 
the  previous  reign.  The  banished  ones  were  brought 
out  of  their  hiding-places,  and  joyfully  mingled  with 
their  families  again.  Many  who  were  so  enfeebled 
by  the  weight  of  heavy  chains  and  prolonged  toil 
that  they  could  not  travel  were  carried  to  their 
former  homes  by  royal  messengers,  and  the  king 
restored  property  and  land  to  those   who  had  been 


Il6   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

despoiled  of  them  for  their  adherence  to  their 
Christian  principles. 

Although  the  young  king  had  never  professed 
himself  a  Christian,  he  had  long  since  given  up  all 
faith  in  the  national  idols.  The  priests  of  the  old 
order,  on  one  occasion,  boasted  before  him  of  the 
power  of  the  idols,  and  assured  him  that  no  one  could 
harm  or  destroy  them.  The  king  called  a  number  of 
Christians  and  sent  them  to  burn  down  one  of  the 
idol  houses,  and  he  stood  by  and  watched  the  flames 
as  they  consumed  the  building.  This  event  not  only 
decided  the  king  as  to  the  helplessness  of  idols,  but 
also  shook  the  faith  in  them  of  many  of  the  young 
men  of  the  capital.  All  idols  were  expelled  from  the 
royal  palace,  the  attendance  of  the  priests  and  diviners 
was  dispensed  with,  and  the  usual  royal  gifts  for 
sacrifices  were  discontinued.  When  the  priests  came 
one  day  to  ask  for  a  bullock  in  behalf  of  a  certain 
idol,  the  king  said  :  "  If  the  idol  wants  a  bullock,  let 
him  come  and  ask  me  for  one." 

With  one  fell  swoop  also  Radama  abolished  the 
cruel  tangena  ordeal,  with  sorceries,  divinations,  and 
superstitious  ceremonies.  He  gave  opportunities  for 
all  to  approach  him  who  had  complaints  to  make,  or 
who  desired  justice  to  be  administered,  and  by  his 
wise  and  magnanimous  treatment  of  the  traditional 
enemies  of  his  own  tribe,  the  Sakalavas,  he  attached 
them  to  him  by  strong  ties  of  friendship.  As  a  result 
of  these  wise  and  politic  measures,  the  reign  of  Radama 
opened  with  the  highest  promise  of  usefulness,  and 
had  he  taken  all  his  steps  with  equal  prudence  his 
reign  might  have  been  both  happy  and  long. 

Unfortunately    he    did    not    choose    his    principal 


THE   DAWN    OF   FREEDOM    AND    PROSPERITY.       II7 

advisers  and  helpers  in  the  State  with  discretion.  He 
dismissed  nearly  all  the  ministers  of  Ranavalona  and 
even  took  little  notice  of  the  commander-in-chief  who 
had  been  mainly  instrumental  in  placing  him  on  the 
throne.  He  appointed  to  the  chief  offices  in  the 
Government  a  number  of  young  men  of  no  experience 
or  ability,  but  who  had  been  friends  and  companions 
of  his  youth.  Such  statesmen  were  not  likely  to  add 
much  to  the  stability  of  the  throne.  In  order  also  to 
increase  the  trade  and  wealth  of  his  kingdom,  Radama 
abolished  all  duties  and  tariffs  upon  imports,  and  the 
first  result  of  this  step  was  that  the  ports  were  inun- 
dated with  intoxicating  liquors.  Sixty  thousand 
gallons  of  rum  were  brought  from  Mauritius  in  a  week. 
Houses  were  speedily  opened  for  its  sale  in  all  direc- 
tions, and  drunkenness  with  its  train  of  attendant  evils 
rapidly  spread  among  the  people.  French  and  English 
traders  flocked  to  the  capital,  and  as  the  king  was  of 
a  jovial  disposition,  a  love  of  indulgence  in  drinking 
and  other  vices  took  hold  upon  him.  Those  around 
him  encouraged  him  in  a  downward  course.  Foreign 
traders,  political  opponents,  and  hypocritical  flatterers, 
played  upon  his  weaknesses  for  their  various  objects 
and  incited  him  to  his  ruin. 

Very  soon  after  the  death  of  Ranavalona,  the 
Christians  re-established  Divine  worship  in  the  capital. 
Eleven  houses  were  opened  as  meeting-places,  all  of 
them  being  crowded  with  worshippers.  Then  they  set 
to  work  to  erect  chapels,  and  five  were  speedily  built. 
They  were  very  rude  structures,  with  mud  walls  and 
thatched  roofs,  but  they  were  filled  with  earnest  men 
and  women  who  met  to  rejoice  that  religious  freedom 
had  been  restored  in  the  land. 


Il8    MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

When  the  news  of  Radama's  accession  to  the  throne 
reached  England,  the  London  Missionary  Society  took 
prompt  measures  to  occupy  the  field  again.  Rev.  W. 
Ellis  was  requested  to  proceed  at  once  to  Antanan- 
arivo to  prepare  the  way  for  new  agents  to  settle 
there  and  to  secure  sites  for  the  building  of  churches. 
In  a  few  days  he  took  ship  and  after  a  favourable 
voyage  reached  Mauritius.  He  was  detained  there 
for  several  weeks  as  the  season  was  most  unhealthy 
in  Madagascar,  but  he  did  what  was  possible  under 
the  circumstances  by  correspondence.  He  learned 
that  a  number  of  French  Romish  priests  had  arrived, 
and  some  had  penetrated  to  the  capital,  but  that  the 
Christians  anxiously  desired  the  return  of  their  old 
pastors  and  teachers.  Mr.  Ellis  wrote  to  them  encour- 
aging them  to  keep  united  and  faithful,  and  assuring 
them  that  arrangements  were  being  made  to  supply 
the  needs  of  the  Mission  as  rapidly  as  possible.  He 
also  wrote  to  the  king,  informing  him  that  he  was 
only  waiting  for  an  opportunity  to  come  to  Madagascar, 
and  entreating  him  not  to  allow  the  spots  consecrated 
by  the  blood  of  the  martyrs  to  be  sold  or  occupied  till 
he  arrived. 

Mr.  Ellis  reached  Tamatave  in  May,  1862,  accom- 
panied by  several  traders  and  a  number  of  the  Christ- 
ian exiles  who  had  taken  refuge  at  Mauritius.  A  boat 
full  of  Christians  came  out  to  meet  the  vessel  and 
welcome  Mr.  Ellis  as  he  approached  the  bay.  As  he 
stepped  on  shore  he  was  met  by  a  royal  messenger, 
who  handed  him  a  letter  of  welcome  from  the  king. 
Christians  crowded  round  him,  affording  a  delightful 
contrast  to  the  experience  of  his  former  visit,  when  he 
could  only  meet  them  at  midnight,  and  in  secret. 


THE   DAWN   OF   FREEDOM   AND    PROSPERITY.       IIQ 

The  next  day  a  thanksgiving  meeting  was  held  in  a 
house  which  the  king  had  provided  for  the  purpose, 
and  sixty  people  were  present.  The  following  day  was 
the  Sabbath,  and  a  hundred  Christians  attended  the 
public  services.  Mr.  Ellis,  both  at  Tamatave  and 
during  his  journey  through  the  country,  had  ample 
evidence  of  the  mischief  which  was  being  done  by  the 
traffic  in  ardent  spirits.  He  sometimes  saw  the 
entire  population  of  a  village  intoxicated  before  twelve 
o'clock  in  the  day. 

As  he  came  near  the  capital  he  saw  at  Ambato- 
manga,  a  large  company  of  men  by  the  roadsidd. 
When  he  was  close  upon  them  they  all  rose  and  sang 
a  hymn.  They  then  informed  him  that  they  had 
been  sent  by  the  Christians  of  the  capital  to  meet  and 
escort  him,  which  they  did  by  forming  around  him 
and  singing  hymns  as  they  marched  along.  On 
reaching  Antananarivo  he  found  a  comfortable  house 
had  been  provided  for  his  residence.  Crowds  of 
Christians,  many  of  whom  were  maimed  and  marked 
by  the  severity  of  their  persecution,  streamed  in  to 
welcome  him.  Presents  of  oxen,  sheep,  pigs,  poultry, 
and  other  farm  produce  were  poured  upon  him, 
very  much  of  which  he  had  to  distribute  to  the  poor, 
as  he  could  not  make  use  of  all. 

The  day  after  his  arrival  Mr.  Ellis  was  summoned 
to  an  audience  with  the  king  and  queen.  He  made 
a  statement  to  them  of  the  intentions  of  the  London 
Missionary  Society  to  send  a  company  of  mission 
agents  to  resume  the  work  which  had  been  so  long 
interrupted.  He  was  also  the  bearer  of  despatches 
from  the  Governor  of  Mauritius,  one  of  them  being  a 
letter  from  Queen  Victoria,  assuring  the  king  of  the 


120   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

continued  friendship  of  the  EngHsh  Government. 
After  this  reception,  Mr.  Ellis  was  besieged  with 
crowds  of  Christians  who  gathered  up  from  the  sur- 
rounding district  to  welcome  him.  He  was  deeply- 
affected  when  visited  by  the  widows  and  children 
of  some  of  those  who  had  been  burnt,  stoned,  or 
hurled  over  the  precipice,  and  who  themselves  had 
suffered  severe  privations  in  the  cause  of  Christ. 

Prince  Ramonja  at  this  time  was  ill,  and  expressed 
a  warm  desire  to  see  Mr.  Ellis.  In  the  interview,  he 
testified  his  deep  gratitude  at  the  altered  condition  of 
the  Christians ;  his  son  accompanied  the  missionary 
to  his  house,  and  at  a  meeting  held  in  the  evening 
united  himself  with  the  Church.  The  prime  minister 
sought  a  long  interview  with  Mr.  Ellis  in  order  to 
question  him  fully  as  to  the  special  objects  of  the 
missionaries  and  other  agents  who  were  supposed  to 
be  on  the  way  to  Madagascar.  The  fullest  informa- 
tion was  given  and  he  was  assured  that  no  political 
purposes  were  entertained,  but  that  the  whole  aim  of 
the  Mission  would  be  to  promote  the  moral  and  social 
welfare  of  the  people. 

Mr.  Ellis  visited  the  spots  where  the  martyrs  had 
so  bravely  suffered  death,  and  on  the  first  Sunday  he 
spent  at  the  capital  he  went  to  the  chapel  at  Ana- 
lakely,  which  had  been  crowded  since  break  of  day. 
It  was  seven  o'clock  when  the  missionary  arrived, 
accompanied  by  Prince  Ramonja's  son  and  several 
young  chiefs.  The  place  was  densely  packed  with 
people  of  all  ages.  When  they  stood  up  to  sing,  the 
full,  joyous  burst  of  praise  was  thrilling  to  hear. 
There  were  not  less  than  one  thousand  people  present 
at  the  service.     Other  places  visited  on  the  same  day 


THE   DAWN   OF   FREEDOM   AND   PROSrERITY.       1 23 

were  equally  thronged,  and  the  gladness  manifested 
in  the  meetings  was  overwhelming. 

After  a  few  days'  sojourn  in  the  city  Mr.  Ellis  was 
asked  by  some  of  the  princes  and  nobles  to  teach 
their  sons  English,  and  he  consented  to  give  them 
instruction  for  two  hours  each  day.  The  queen  sent 
her  adopted  son  and  the  king  asked  him  to  go  to  the 
palace  daily  to  read  English  with  him,  and  this  was 
done  till  within  a  few  days  of  Radama's  death.  The 
king,  on  the  death  of  his  mother,  began  to  erect  a 
good  stone  building  to  be  used  as  a  school.  When  it 
was  finished  he  desired  Mr.  Ellis  to  hold  service  in  it 
each  Sunday  afternoon  for  himself  and  any  of  his 
court  who  chose  to  attend. 

On  one  occasion  when  the  members  of  an  embassy 
from  England,  including  Dr.  Ryan,  Bishop  of  Mauritius, 
waited  upon  the  king,  reference  was  made  to  him 
having  saved  so  many  lives  and  having  shown  such 
kindness  to  the  Christians.  Mr.  Ellis  was  asked  to 
reply  on  behalf  of  the  king.  In  presence  of  a 
crowded  court  the  missionary  responded,  stating  that 
undoubtedly  the  king  had  done  much  for  his  people 
and  for  Christianity,  but,  he  added  :  "  There  is  one 
thing  wanted — the  one  thing  needful — he  has  not  be- 
come a  Christian  himself."  The  king  looked  very 
serious  and  said  to  the  court :  "  Mr.  Ellis  knows 
what  is  in  my  heart ;  he  knows  that  I  desire  to  under- 
stand and  serve  God,  I  desire — I  pray  to  God  to 
enlighten  my  mind,  to  teach  me  what  I  ought  to  know." 

The  Sunday  afternoon  service  was  attended  by 
about  sixty  officers,  and  Radama  was  nearly  always 
present.  The  greatest  decorum  was  observed  during 
the  proceedings  and  impressions  were  made  on  the 


124   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

minds  of  some,  which  afterwards  deepened  and  led  to 
true  conversion.  But  as  British  and  French  traders 
increased  in  the  capital  the  moral  conduct  of  Radama 
deteriorated.  After  the  service  was  over  on  Sunday 
afternoons,  a  large  piano  was  brought  in,  and  music, 
singing  and  dancing  were  introduced.  These  were 
too  often  followed  by  feasting  and  drinking,  and  the 
king  of  a  growing  nation  would  be  found  quite 
drunk.  Mr.  Ellis  faithfully  expostulated  with  him  as 
to  his  conduct  and  he  repeatedly  promised  amend- 
ment. But  there  were  too  many  around  the  king 
ready  to  encourage  him  and  join  him  in  his  revels  for 
these  admonitions  to  prevail. 

On  the  30th  of  August  a  contingent  of  helpers  for 
the  Mission  reached  Antananarivo,  containing  Rev. 
R.  Toy  and  Mrs.  Toy,  a  medical  missionary  and  his 
wife,  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Davidson,  a  schoolmaster,  Mr. 
Stagg,  and  a  skilled  printer,  Mr.  Barrett.  They  were 
cordially  welcomed  by  the  king  and  queen  ;  by  the 
members  of  the  British  Embassy  ;  and  by  the  Christ- 
ians. They  were  followed  a  few  days  afterwards  by 
Revs.  R.  G.  Hartley,  M.A.,  W.  E.  Cousins,  and  G. 
Cousins,  and  their  wives.  They  brought  with  them 
a  beautiful  copy  of  the  English  Bible  as  a  gift  from 
the  Bible  Society,  which  Radama  readily  accepted. 
On  the  Sabbath  following  the  arrival  of  this  company, 
which  was  the  first  Sunday  in  the  month,  the  Christ- 
ian believers  held  a  united  communion.  Eight 
hundred  were  present,  and  it  was  an  affecting  service. 
All  those  present  had  been  admitted  to  church  mem- 
bership by  native  evangelists,  and  had  proved  the 
reality  of  their  profession  by  their  fidelity  to  Christ 
in  the  dark  ni^ht  of  terror  and  trial. 


THE   DAWN    OF    FREEDOM   AND    TROSPERITY.       1 25 

The  Bishop  of  Mauritius,  who  had  accompanied 
the  British  Embassy  to  Madagascar,  conferred  much 
with  Mr.  EUis  on  the  best  way  of  covering  the  island 
with  a  knowledge  of  Christ.  The  Bishop  strongly 
disavowed  any  intention  of  crossing  the  lines  of  those 
who  were  in  the  field  ;  but  suggested  that  the  Church 
Missionary  Society  might  properly  take  up  work 
along  the  coast,  which  as  yet  was  untouched  by  mis- 
sion effort.  To  this  Mr.  Ellis  assented,  saying  that 
the  mutual  understanding  which  had  prevailed  be- 
tween the  two  Societies,  that  they  should  not  inter- 
fere with  each  other's  spheres,  had  hitherto  worked  so 
well  that  he  did  not  fear  that  it  would  be  infringed  in 
the  future,  and  that  he  had  already  written  to  Eng- 
land suggesting  that  the  Church  Missionary  Society 
should  take  up  some  portions  of  the  island.  In 
course  of  time  this  Society  established  a  mission 
on  the  south-east  coast,  and  the  Society  for  the 
Propagation  of  the  Gospel  one  on  the  north-east 
coast.  The  people  of  Madagascar  have  thus  been 
saved  the  unedifying  spectacle  of  rival  Christian 
bodies  diverting  them  from  the  great  foundation 
principles,  on  which  there  is  general  agreement,  by 
controversy  on  matters  of  mere  Church  order  and 
administration. 

Mr.  Ellis  took  decisive  action  as  to  the  erection  of 
churches  on  the  places  where  the  martyrs  had  been 
translated  to  the  heavenly  world.  The  king  very 
graciously  acceded  to  his  request  that  they  should 
be  reserved  for  this  purpose,  and  a  special  fund  was 
commenced  in  England  by  the  London  Missionary 
Society  to  provide  the  money  required.  The  noble 
sum  of  ^13,000  was  subscribed  in  a  short  time,  and 


126   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

steps  were  taken  to  carry  out  the  project,  which  will 
presently  be  detailed. 

The  king  and  queen  were  publicly  crowned  on 
the  23rd  of  September.  A  vast  throng  assembled  to 
witness  the  ceremony.  There  was  no  recognition  of 
the  idols  or  the  idol  priests,  and  no  charms  were 
carried  near  the  king's  person,  as  had  been  the 
custom  heretofore.  There  was  a  company  of  priests 
in  the  crowd  with  a  number  of  idols,  which  Mr.  Ellis 
describes  as  being  dirty  pieces  of  silver  chain,  small 
silver  balls,  pieces  of  coral,  silver  ornaments  repre- 
senting crocodile's  teeth,  with  strips  of  scarlet  cloth, 
and  one  thing  which  looked  like  a  red  woollen  cap  of 
liberty. 

The  Christian  churches  of  the  capital  were  now 
properly  organised.  A  simple  statement  of  principles 
of  Church  order  was  prepared  ;  native  pastors  were ' 
appointed  to  preside  over  the  churches,  with  boards 
of  deacons.  The  missionaries  explained  that,  while 
willing  to  be  associated  with  the  native  pastors,  they 
did  not  desire  to  control  the  churches,  but  to  aid  in 
maintaining  order  and  purity  in  them,  and  to  extend 
Christianity  to  regions  beyond.  Mr.  W.  E.  Cousins 
was  associated  with  two  native  preachers  in  the  over- 
sight of  the  church  at  Amparibe  ;  Mr.  Ellis  was 
appointed  to  that  at  Ambatonakanga  and  Mr.  Toy 
retained  the  church  he  had  gathered  in  the  north 
of  the  city,  but  which  afterwards  worshipped  at 
Ambohipotsy,  one  of  the  memorial  sites. 

In  March,  1863,  the  king  and  his  ministers  exe- 
cuted deeds,  by  which  the  memorial  sites  were 
legally  conveyed  to  the  members  of  the  Mission. 
The    boundaries    were    fixed,    and    workmen    were 


THE   DAWN   OF    FREEDOM   AND    PROSrERITY.      12/ 

employed  to  quarry  stones  for  the  foundations  and 
walls  of  a  good  church  at  Ambohipotsy.  At  once 
every  member  of  the  congregation  was  at  work — 
some  removing  rubbish,  some  levelling  the  ground, 
women  and  children  carrying  earth  or  stones  to  and 
fro,  and  all  of  them  singing  for  joy  as  they  laboured. 
A  spacious  church  was  built  on  the  east  side  of  the 
city,  and  filled  to  excess  on  the  day  of  its  consecra- 
tion ;  and  on  the  first  Communion  Sabbath  fifty-eight 
members  observed  the  ordinance,  and  ten  received 
baptism. 

While  all  things  seemed  to  be  working  so  favour- 
ably for  Christianity,  they  were  not  going  so  happily 
in  regard  to  the  king  and  the  political  welfare  of  the 
nation.  Radama  became  the  dupe  of  Mr.  Lambert, 
the  Frenchman  already  referred  to,  who  encouraged 
his  vices,  and  led  him  to  frequent  fits  of  drunkenness. 
This  man,  while  the  king  was  intoxicated,  induced 
him  to  sign  a  concession  of  rights  to  him  over  one- 
third  of  the  arable  land  of  the  kingdom  ;  of  working 
all  its  mines  ;  of  conducting  what  manufactures  he 
pleased  ;  and  of  introducing  Jesuits  without  any 
limit.  All  these  concessions  were  violations  of  the 
laws  of  the  realm. 

Then  Radama  surrounded  himself  with  a  number 
of  dissolute  young  men,  who  really  governed  the 
island.  It  was  no  wonder  that  the  supporters  of  the 
old  superstitions  began  to  bestir  themselves.  There 
came  floating  to  the  capital  from  the  country  districts 
vague  and  alarming  rumours  as  to  visions  and  voices 
said  to  be  seen  and  heard  by  many  who  were  seized 
with  a  sickness  which  rendered  some  unconscious, 
and  which  caused  others  to  jerk  and  dance  in  an 


128    MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

unaccountable  manner.  These  voices,  it  was  said, 
delivered  warnings  as  to  awful  calamities  which  were 
about  to  occur  on  account  of  the  apostasy  of  the  king 
and  his  ministers  from  the  gods  of  the  country. 

The  effect  of  these  pretended  revelations  on  the 
mind  of  the  king  was  very  great.  His  mind  was  no 
doubt  much  weakened  by  his  growing  indulgence  in 
sensuality  and  drinking.  A  deep  melancholy  fell  upon 
him.  One  day  he  was  sitting  with  Mr.  Ellis  in  his 
palace  when  a  number  of  priests  and  dancing-women 
rushed  in.  The  women  danced  madly  round  the  room, 
and  the  priests  regarded  Mr.  Ellis  with  threatening 
looks.  The  king  at  last  mustered  courage  to  order 
them  out  of  the  room.  Mr.  Ellis  was  afterwards  told 
that  the  party  had  meant  to  attack  him,  and  for  nine 
successive  nights  small  packets  of  what  were  thought 
to  be  death  warrants  or  sorcerer's  charms  were  laid  at 
the  door  of  his  house.  The  king,  on  hearing  of  the 
danger  to  which  he  was  subjected,  sent  a  guard  of 
soldiers  to  watch  his  house  nightly. 

The  king's  mind  was  becoming  more  weak  and 
morbid,  until  it  was  doubtful  whether  it  had  not 
entirely  given  way.  It  was  said  that  he  had  been 
constrained  to  favour  a  new  persecution  of  the  Christ- 
ians, but  the  truth  of  this  was  never  proved.  But  he 
did,  at  the  suggestion  of  evil  advisers,  proclaim  that 
all  differences  of  opinion,  whether  between  individuals 
or  villages  or  towns  might  be  settled  by  open  battle 
between  the  parties,  and  that  the  successful  party 
should  not  be  called  to  account  for  any  that  might 
be  slain  in  the  conflict.  The  wiser  of  the  nobles 
stoutly  opposed  this  decree;  they  went  before  the 
kincr  on  their  knees  and  besoufjht  him  to  withdraw 


THE    DAWN    OF   FREEDOM   AND   PROSPERITY.       1 29 

it,  and  to  give  up  his  evil  counsellors.  They  pleaded 
in  vain,  however,  for  he  refused  to  listen  to  them.  As 
the  decree  was  an  open  incitement  to  civil  war  and 
internal  discord,  the  wiser  statesmen  of  the  country 
felt  a  time  for  action  had  arrived. 

One  day  Mr.  Ellis  saw  the  plain  in  front  of  the 
palace  covered  with  armed  men,  and  was  told  that 
thirteen  of  the  king's  favourites  had  been  seized, 
some  of  them  put  to  death,  and  the  remainder  held 
in  confinement.  A  fresh  slaughter  of  officers  and 
nobles  followed  the  next  day,  and  the  day  after  that, 
being  the  12th  of  May,  1863,  the  conspirators  forced 
an  entrance  into  the  king's  bedroom,  and  removing 
the  queen  from  the  scene,  strangled  him.  As  they 
put  a  cord  round  his  neck,  he  said  :  "  I  have  never 
shed  blood."  A  mantle  was  cast  over  his  head  and 
the  cord  tightened,  and  he  sank  lifeless  on  the  floor. 
He  was  murdered  by  the  very  party  which  had 
exalted  him  to  the  throne,  and  which  had  been  so 
disappointed  in  the  results  of  his  reign. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  but  that  this  young  man 
had  accomplished  much  good  for  his  country,  which 
was  not  all  neutralised  by  the  weak  and  wavering 
conduct  of  the  last  few  months  of  his  life.  He  had 
abolished  religious  persecution  and  established  liberty 
of  conscience  ;  he  had  pacified  the  traditional  enemies 
of  his  race  and  brought  them  into  friendly  alliance 
with  his  own  tribe.  He  had  also  given  new  impulses 
to  the  growth  of  civilisation  throughout  his  province. 
But  he  hesitated  to  embrace  Christianity,  which  would 
have  saved  him  from  the  errors  and  sins  of  his  life  ; 
he  associated  himself  with  those  who  were  not  fit 
to  be  his  advisers,  and  trusted  in  flatterers  and  boon 

I 


I30   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

companions,  who  played  upon  his  frailties  for  their 
own  profit.  So  what  otherwise  might  have  been  a 
bright  and  prosperous  reign,  was  thus  brought  to  an 
abrupt  end. 

The  conquering  party  in  the  palace  after  killing  the 
king,  had  an  interview  with  the  queen,  and  offered 
her  the  crown  upon  certain  conditions,  which  she 
accepted.  Then  was  laid  the  foundation  of  a  consti- 
tutional government  in  the  island.  She  engaged  that 
the  sovereign  should  not  alone  have  the  power  of 
sentencing  any  one  to  death  or  of  enacting  any  law, 
but  that  certain  representatives  of  the  nobles  and  of 
the  people  along  with  the  sovereign  should  have  the 
power  of  life  or  death,  and  of  making  or  altering  the 
laws  of  the  nation.  Perfect  religious  freedom  was 
also  to  be  continued  to  all  classes  of  the  kingdom. 

About  noon  the  firing  of  cannon  summoned  an 
assembly  of  the  people.  It  was  then  announced  that 
the  king  had  died  during  the  night  by  his  own  hand, 
tha?  his  widow  Rasoherina  had  succeeded  to  the 
crown,  and  that  she  had  agreed  to  govern  the  king- 
dom on  the  terms  already  specified.  Thus  happily 
the  State  passed  through  a  crisis  which  might  have 
resulted  in  moral  disaster  of  the  worst  kind.  The 
queen  was  not  a  Christian,  but  a  patron  of  the 
heathen  party  and  of  the  idols,  but  at  her  first  recep- 
tion of  the  missionaries  she  assured  them  that  they 
should  be  sustained  in  their  liberty  to  worship  and 
preach  as  before,  and  that  she  cordially  approved  of 
the  objects  they  had  in  view. 

The  startling  change  in  the  crown  came  on  the 
Christians  with  bewildering  surprise.  But  the  experi- 
ence was  not  all  unwholesome.     The  transition  from 


U-: 


,T 


«^ 


131 


THE   DAWN    OF    FREEDOM   AND   PROSPERITY.       1 33 

trial  and  persecution  to  prosperity  and  royal  favour 
had  been  so  sudden  that  many  in  the  Church  were  in 
danger  of  being  carried  away  by  it.  It  was  soon 
found  also,  that  to  be  a  Christian  was  no  longer  a 
reproach  but  rather  a  road  to  honour,  and  so  unworthy 
men  began  to  creep  into  the  Church.  This  reverse 
came  as  a  check  upon  such  tendencies  ;  it  led  the 
Christians  to  be  more  watchful,  and  convinced  them 
of  the  instability  of  worldly  things. 

The  new  queen,  Rasoherina,  proved  herself  to  be 
a  good  ruler.  She  had  no  partiality  towards  Christ- 
ianity, but  was,  as  stated,  a  devoted  follower  of  the 
old  superstitions.  She  was  shrewd  and  firm  in  her 
administration,  kind  and  merciful  in  her  disposition, 
and  she  honourably  carried  out  the  condition  on 
which  she  assumed  the  crown — of  maintaining  liberty 
of  conscience  for  all  her  subjects.  Only  one  thing  the 
Christians  had  to  complain  of,  viz.,  that  many  of  them 
who  were  officers  and  work-people  under  the  Govern- 
ment were  obliged  to  work  on  the  Sabbath  day,  and 
also  to  be  present  and  take  part  in  amusements  of 
which  they  did  not  approve.  This  did  not  arise  from 
unfriendliness  to  the  Christians,  but  from  the  fact  that 
the  Government  ignored  the  right  of  any  one  to  be 
exempt  from  duty  who  was  in  its  employment. 

When  the  queen  and  her  court  were  at  Ambohi- 
manga,  it  was  several  times  arranged  for  the  Christians 
to  attend  service  once  during  the  Sabbath.  The  queen 
said  to  them  on  one  occasion  :  "  I  know  that  many 
of  you  are  praying  people  and  like  to  attend  worship. 
Perhaps  you  are  afraid  that  as  I  do  not  pray  I  shall 
be  displeased  with  you  for  doing  so.  Do  not  think 
so ;  those  who  like  shall  c[o.     But  remember  that  I 


1(34    MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

shall  expect  you  who  are  Christians,  and  thus />ro/css 
to  be  better  than  others,  will  act  better  than  other 
people.  I  shall  expect  that  you  will  not  lie,  or  cheat, 
or  steal,  or  do  evil  as  others  do,  but  show  by  your 
conduct  what  a  good  thing  praying  really  is."  This 
was  an  unconscious  but  a  splendid  testimony  to  the 
purity  and  superiority  of  life  which  the  Gospel 
inculcates. 

Mr.  Ellis  and  his  friends  sought  to  revive  the  work 
of  Christianity  in  the  numerous  villages  of  the  district 
round  the  capital  which  had  felt  severely  the  strain 
of  persecution.  Mr.  Toy  gave  much  attention  to  the 
villages  in  the  south,  and  gathered  a  group  of  young 
men  whom  he  sought  to  train  as  preachers  and 
pastors.  Mr.  W.  E.  Cousins  did  the  same  for  the 
villages  to  the  north,  and  in  order  to  arouse  the 
aggressive  spirit  in  the  heart  of  the  churches  it  was 
resolved  to  hold  a  missionary  prayer  meeting  of  all 
the  churches  once  each  month.  The  first  of  these 
meetings  was  held  at  Analakely.  Long  before  the 
appointed  time  crowds  of  people  assembled,  and  the 
service  had  to  be  held  in  the  open  air  in  order  that  all 
might  partake  in  it.  At  least  3000  were  present,  and 
it  continued  several  hours. 

Very  delightful  testimonies  as  to  the  growth  of 
Christianity  were  constantly  being  reported.  In  one 
village  north  of  the  capital,  the  whole  of  the  people 
had  been  ardent  worshippers  of  the  idols  kept  among 
them,  but  the  idols  were  forsaken,  the  people  took 
a  house  and  set  it  apart  for  the  worship  of  Christ. 
When  the  queen  was  told  of  this,  she  replied  :  "  If 
any  villagers  are  Christians  and  wish  to  discontinue 
idol  worship  they  may  do  so ;  it  is  no  offence." 


135 


THE   DAWN   OF   FREEDOM   AND   PROSPERITY.      1 37 

A  medical  dispensary  under  the  management  of 
Dr.  Davidson,  was  now  in  full  operation,  and  multi- 
tudes thronged  to  him  daily  to  submit  themselves 
to  his  healing  art,  all  of  whom  had  the  opportunity 
also  of  becoming  acquainted  with  "  the  Great  Healer." 
Additional  helpers  had  been  sent  out  by  the  Society 
in  Mr.  and  Mrs,  Pearse  and  Mr.  Kessler,  several  new 
churches  had  been  built,  or  were  in  the  course  of  erec- 
tion, and  a  large  central  school  had  been  recently 
opened.  Mr.  Stagg,  the  schoolmaster,  was  delighted 
with  the  intelligence  of  the  Malagasy  children,  and 
declared  they  were  capable  of  receiving  as  high  an 
education  as  English  children.  He  laboured  assidu- 
ously to  establish  a  system  of  education  resembling  in 
its  general  features  that  commenced  by  Mr.  Joseph 
Lancaster  in  England.  But  in  the  midst  of  his  useful 
work  his  life  was  terminated  in  February,  1864,  seven- 
teen months  after  his  landing  in  the  island. 

Mr.  Parrett  issued  from  the  press  an  immense  sup- 
ply of  literature.  A  large  new  edition  of  the  Bible 
revised  by  Mr.  Griffiths  was  circulated,  translations  of 
some  of  the  most  useful  religious  books  were  prepared, 
as  were  spelling-books  and  other  educational  works. 
A  periodical  called  Good  Words  was  commenced  on 
the  1st  of  January,  1866,  and  a  commentary  on  the 
New  Testament  was  in  progress.  Thus,  in  this  land 
so  recently  benighted,  a  really  Christian  literature 
was  rapidly  being  created. 


i^s^S1i»4^!^*^ 


-riiiiiiiiii  ,u 


CHAPTER  VII. 


A   CHRISTIAN    KINGDOM    ESTABLISHED. 

"  He  that  goeth  forth  with  weeping, 

Bearing  precious  seed  in  love, 
Never  tiring,  never  sleeping, 

Findeth  mercy  from  above  : 
Soft  descend  the  dews  of  heaven. 

Bright  the  rays  celestial  shine, 
Precious  fruit  will  thus  be  given. 

Through  an  influence  ail  divine." — Hastings. 

IT  is  time  to  give  some  account  of  the  progress  made 
in  the  erection  of  the  churches  intended  to 
memorialise  the  faith  and  steadfastness  of  the 
Malagasy  martyrs.  Mr.  James  Sibree  was 
invited  to  go  out  to  Madagascar  as  architect  of  the 
proposed  churches.  He  accepted  the  appointment, 
and  leaving  England  arrived  at  Antananarivo  in 
October,  1863.  It  was  decided  that  the  first  site 
built  upon  should  be  that  at  Ambatonakanga,  and 
immediate  preparations  were  made.  The  first  stone 
was  laid  on  the  19th  of  January,  1864,  by  the  prime 
minister,  in  the  presence  of  some  of  the  leading 
members  of  the  Government  and  a  large  number  of 
138 


A   CHRISTIAN    KINGDOM    ESTAI5LISIIED.         1 39 

Christians.  Slowly  the  building  progressed,  and  it 
was  not  till  March,  1866,  that  the  first  principal  of  the 
roof  was  raised.  The  building  of  the  tower  was  an 
important  event  to  the  Malagasy.  It  was  a  constant 
object  of  wonder  to  the  gaping  crowds  which  filled 
the  city  on  the  market  days.  Some  believed  that 
the  belfry  windows  were  intended  for  cannon,  others 
thought  some  mysterious  means  for  gaining  political 
power  were  hidden  in  it,  others  never  believed  it  could 
be  completed,  saying  scoffingly,  "  When  that  is  finished 
I  will  be  a  Christian." 

Mr.  Sibree  dared  not  tell  the  workmen  how  high  it 
was  to  be,  although  it  was  of  very  moderate  height. 
The  wives  and  children  came  repeatedly  to  beg  that 
their  husbands  and  fathers  should  not  be  sent  so  near 
to  the  sky  to  work.  At  one  time  it  was  feared  the 
men  would  refuse  to  mount  the  scaffolding,  and  that 
the  architect  himself  with  the  English  foreman  would 
have  to  complete  the  spire.  But  after  many  anxieties, 
on  the  31st  of  August,  Mr.  Sibree  and  Rev.  G.  Cousins 
went  up  the  scaffolding  and  put  on  the  capstone  of  the 
spire  and  fixed  the  finial  cross.  The  native  foreman 
felt  his  heart  overflow  with  gladness  and  said,  "  Shall 
we  not  thank  God?"  and  Mr.  Cousins  with  the  little 
group  around  him  offered  up  praise  that  the  work 
was  completed  without  any  accident  or  loss  of  life 
or  limb  of  the  workmen.  The  "topstone"  was  thus 
put  on  with  gladness  if  not  with  shouting. 

The  building  was  opened  and  consecrated  in 
January,  1867.  A  clock  was  fixed  in  the  tower 
which  was  the  first  public  timekeeper  in  Madagascar. 
The  building  was  constructed  to  hold  1200  people, 
but  at  the  opening  service  at  least  1 500  were  packed 


I40   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

inside,  and  more  than  a  looo  were  left  outside.  As 
the  first  congregation  dispersed,  those  who  were  out- 
side pressed  in,  and  a  second  service  was  held. 

In  the  meantime  progress  was  being  made  with  the 
second  church  at  Ambohipotsy.  As  it  was  to  stand 
in  such  an  elevated  position  as  to  be  a  landmark  in 
the  district,  a  somewhat  more  ambitious  design  was 
attempted,  which  came  out  well.  Mr.  Sibree,  having 
completed  these  two  churches,  prepared  plans  and 
sketches  for  the  other  two,  and  left  the  island  for 
England  in  May,  1867.  These  churches  were  chiefly 
paid  for  by  money  subscribed  in  England  ;  but  great 
liberality  was  likewise  displayed  by  the  Malagasy 
Christians  in  giving  what  they  could  towards  them. 

The  buildings  have  not  only  memorialized  the 
dying  faith  of  the  martyrs,  but  they  have  given 
evidence  to  the  nation  of  the  good-will  of  Western 
Christians  towards  it,  and  also  of  their  profound 
faith  in  their  religion.  The  erection  of  these  beauti- 
ful houses  of  prayer  gave  a  wonderful  stimulus  to 
civilisation.  Nothing  could  have  done  more  in  teach- 
ing the  various  arts  and  manufactures  involved  in 
such  buildings  than  the  employment  of  so  many 
natives  for  several  years  under  the  direction  of 
experienced  managers,  or  the  carrying  out  of  such 
important  operations.  Indeed,  the  building  of  these 
churches  was  an  epoch  both  in  the  moral  and 
material  progress  of  the  people. 

Mrs.  Pearse,  who,  with  her  husband,  had  entered 
upon  the  duties  of  the  Mission,  and  had  secured  the 
warm  esteem  of  the  native  Christians,  and  especially  of 
the  female  members,  was  stricken  with  a  fatal  illness 
after  she  had  been  in  the  island  only  seven  months, 


A  CHRISTIAN    KINGDOM   ESTABLISHED.  I41 

and  was  suddenly  taken  to  her  reward.  But  in  every 
respect  the  Mission  prospered.  Three  additional 
missionaries,  with  their  wives,  had  arrived  ;  three 
new  places  of  worship  were  opened  during  1864  ; 
two  others  had  been  rebuilt  and  enlarged  ;  the 
social  and  spiritual  life  of  the  members  had  pal- 
pably improved,  and  all  things  looked  bright.  There 
were  more  than  7000  worshippers  in  the  capital  alone, 
whilst  meetings  were  held  in  innumerable  villages  in 
the  surrounding  district.  Mr.  Ellis  paid  a  visit  to 
Lazaina,  the  village  where  Ranivo  had  lived,  whose 
story  has  already  been  related.  He  spent  a  Sunday 
with  her  relatives,  and  found  there  a  good  chapel  in 
course  of  building,  and  about  200  Christians.  The 
primitive  simplicity  and  zeal  of  the  members  of  the 
Church  was  most  gratifying. 

Mr.  Ellis  had  seen  the  restoration  of  Christianity 
in  the  island,  and  had  watched  it  growing  for  two 
years.  He  now  felt  his  mission  there  might  end. 
He  prepared  to  return  to  England,  and  was  over- 
whelmed with  farewells  and  expressions  of  goodwill, 
from  the  queen  and  prime  minister  down  to  the 
poorest  Christians.  He  sailed  on  the  3rd  of  August, 
and  reached  England  on  the  14th  of  October,  1865, 
having  discharged  his  service  effectively  for  the 
Mission,  and  for  Christianity  generally. 

The  queen,  Rasoherina,  had  many  troubles  to  con- 
tend with  during  her  short  reign,  but  she  was  a  woman 
of  much  ability  and  integrity.  She  had  troubles 
with  the  Sakalavas,  who  would  not  believe  that 
Radama  H.  was  dead.  Then  the  French  adven- 
turer, Lambert,  insisted  on  his  agreement  with  the 
late   king   being   honoured,   and    was   only   satisfied 


142    MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

at  last  by  the  payment  of  240,000  dollars.  The 
Jesuit  priests  gave  her  untold  annoyance  by  the 
impudence  of  their  claims,  and  by  intruding  into  the 
schools  and  the  palace,  and  performing  their  cere- 
monies without  asking  leave.  Her  first  prime  minis- 
ter became  a  drunkard  and  had  to  be  replaced.  She 
was  happy  in  securing  as  his  successor  a  man  who 
proved  one  of  the  ablest  statesmen  that  Madagascar 
ever  possessed.  But  she  conscientiously  carried  out 
her  promise  to  allow  perfect  liberty  to  all  her  sub- 
jects as  to  their  religious  opinions. 

Early  in  1868  her  health  failed,  and  she  went  for 
change  of  air  to  Ambohimanga,  which  was  a  favourite 
health  resort  of  the  royal  family.  But  the  change  of 
air  and  scenery,  as  well  as  the  favour  of  the  idols 
which  was  assiduously  sought  for  her,  failed  to  benefit 
her.  A  dangerous  insurrection  and  conspiracy  now 
broke  out.  The  late  prime  minister  formed  a  plot 
to  put  a  young  man  who  professed  Christianity  upon 
the  throne.  He  was  to  be  prime  minister  again 
and  his  co-conspirators  were  to  have  high  office  in 
the  State.  Their  plans  were  carefully  laid  to  seize 
and  slay  the  officers  in  charge  of  the  city,  to  take 
possession  of  the  palace  in  the  queen's  absence,  and 
to  proclaim  a  new  king. 

The  prime  minister  heard  rumours  of  these  intended 
movements,  and  issued  an  order  to  the  officers  of  the 
city  to  remain  vigilantly  at  their  posts  with  their  men. 
Then  he  sent  to  the  dying  queen,  urging  her  imme- 
diate return  to  the  capital.  She  declined  to  come,  on 
the  ground  that  the  idol  had  promised  her  recovery. 
The  prime  minister  suggested  to  the  chief  priest  of 
the  idol  that  the  god  should  direct  her  to  return.    The 


AMUATONAKAMGA   MEMORIAL   CHURCH. 
(The  first  Church,  halt  by  the  Malagasy,  hi  metiipry  of  the  Jl/attyjs.) 


A   CHRISTIAN    KINGDOM    ESTABLISHED.         I45 

priest  replied  that  he  could  not  force  a  god.  The 
statesman  said  that  he  might  influence  the  god's 
keepers.  So  the  idol  was  taken  to  the  queen,  and 
she  was  told  it  was  its  pleasure  that  she  should  go 
into  the  city.  The  queen  refused  to  believe  the  oracle 
and  would  not  go. 

In  the  city  a  rumour  was  circulated  that  Rasoherina 
was  dead  and  the  conspirators  at  once  arose  and 
attacked  the  palace.  But  the  prime  minister  was 
beforehand  in  his  arrangements.  He  seized  the 
leaders  of  the  movement  and  put  them  in  confine- 
ment. When  the  queen  heard  of  the  conspiracy 
she  sent  an  order  that  all  who  were  loyal  to  her 
should  gather  round  her.  Although  she  was  really 
dying,  she  was  brought  out  lying  on  a  couch,  and 
saw  her  subjects  from  a  verandah.  She  was  much 
affected  at  the  loyalty  displayed  towards  her.  She 
was  carried  to  the  capital  and  there  on  the  ist  of 
April  expired.  She  was  buried  in  the  palace-yard  in  a 
tomb  next  to  that  of  Radama  I.  It  would  seem  that 
her  confidence  in  the  national  idols  was  shaken  before 
she  died.  The  prime  minister  addressed  a  letter  to 
Mr.  Ellis  shortly  after  her  death  and  informed  him 
that  she  had  prayed  to  God  before  she  passed  away. 

The  day  after  Rasoherina  died,  her  niece  Ramoma 
was  proclaimed  queen  under  the  title  of  Ranavalona  II. 
Her  first  act  was  to  send  word  to  the  missionaries 
that  their  privileges  would  be  preserved,  and  the 
prime  minister  sent  a  letter  stating  that  no  alteration 
would  be  made  as  to  the  rights  and  liberties  of  the 
Christians.  The  conspirators  were  then  tried.  It 
was  strongly  urged  upon  the  queen  to  put  them  to 
death,  but  to  this  she  would  not  consent.     Some  were 

K 


146   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

condemned  to  perpetual  imprisonment,  and  others  to 
various  terms  of  confinement.  On  the  morning  after 
the  burial  of  the  late  queen,  the  keepers  of  the  idols 
came  as  the  official  priests  and  keepers  to  offer  her 
homage.  But  this  she  declined,  and  told  them  she 
could  only  receive  them  as  subjects,  and  not  as  priests. 
The  idol  hitherto  kept  in  the  palace  was  removed,  and 
the  herd  of  astrologers  and  diviners  were  informed 
that  the  queen  did  not  recognise  their  pretences. 
When  the  period  of  mourning  for  Rasoherina  was 
ended,  an  order  was  issued  that  no  Government  work 
was  to  be  pursued  on  the  Sabbath  day,  and  that  all 
markets  held  on  Sunday  must  be  fixed  for  another 
time.  The  prime  minister  sent  for  some  of  the 
native  preachers,  and  directed  them  at  certain  times 
to  read  the  Bible  and  offer  prayer  in  the  court-yard 
of  the  palace. 

The  new  queen  was  publicly  crowned  on  the  3rd  of 
September.  Thirty-nine  years  before,  Ranavalona  I. 
was  crowned  holding  the  national  idols  in  her  hand 
and  saying,  "  I  put  my  trust  in  you,  therefore  support 
me."  But  on  this  occasion  every  symbol  of  heathen- 
ism was  absent.  The  canopy  was  decorated  with 
texts  of  Scripture,  and  side  by  side  with  the  laws  of 
the  country  there  lay  an  elegantly  bound  copy  of  the 
Bible  in  the  Malagasy  language.  The  queen's  address 
was  entirely  Christian  in  strain,  and  she  said  to  the 
people  :  "  I  have  brought  my  kingdom  to  lean  upon 
God,  and  I  expect  you  one  and  all  to  be  wise  and  just, 
and  to  walk  in  His  ways."  When  she  returned  to  the 
palace  she  desired  prayer  to  be  offered  by  one  of  the 
native  pastors.  One  month  after  this,  both  the  queen 
and  her  prime  minister  were  publicly  baptised  by  a 


A   CHRISTIAN    KINGDOM   ESTABLISHED.         1 47 

native  preacher  in  the  court-yard  of  the  palace,  where 
some  years  before  the  edicts  of  persecution  had  been 
announced.  From  that  time  the  royal  household  met 
for  worship  regularly,  and  as  long  as  the  reign  of 
Ranavalona  II.  continued.  Two  days  before  their 
baptism  she  and  the  prime  minister  were  married. 
It  was  not  a  marriage  of  convenience  but  of  love,  and 
they  wrought  together  as  true  Christians  to  secure 
the  highest  welfare  of  the  realm. 

When  the  queen  was  being  questioned  in  prepara- 
tion for  her  baptism,  she  stated  that  she  had  been 
impressed  with  serious  thoughts  about  God  and  Christ 
from  being  a  little  child.  Then  Andriantoiamba, 
one  of  the  four  noblemen  who  were  burned  as  martyrs, 
gave  her  instruction  in  Divine  things  which  she  had 
never  lost,  but  which  had  led  to  her  complete  conver- 
sion. Her  example  of  receiving  baptism  was  followed 
by  great  numbers.  Almost  all  the  officers  and 
ministers  of  State  were  baptised,  among  them  being 
the  chief  keeper  of  Rasoherina's  idols.  Some  who 
were  thus  baptised,  but  not  many,  might  have  been  led 
to  seek  admission  to  the  Church  as  a  matter  of  policy, 
but  great  caution  was  used  by  the  missionaries  in  the 
reception  of  any  into  the  Church.  The  congregations 
in  the  capital  were  swollen  to  enormous  dimensions, 
and  37,000  people  crowded  to  worship  in  the  houses 
of  prayer,  being  an  increase  of  16,000  in  one  year. 

Following  an  ancient  eastern  custom,  it  was  usual 
for  the  sovereigns  of  Madagascar  to  erect  a  stately 
building  at  the  commencement  of  their  reign  as  a 
memorial  of  the  event.  Ranavalona  II.  resolved  to 
build  a  church  in  the  court  of  the  palace  for  the  use 
of  herself  and  the  royal  household.     The  corner-stone 


148    MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

was  laid  by  her  on  the  20th  of  July,  1869,  and 
the  building  stands  there  now,  a  beautiful  house  of 
prayer.  In  gilded  letters  upon  two  stone  tablets  is 
engraved  the  following  statement : — 

"  By  the  power  of  God  and  the  grace  of  our  Lord 
Jesus,  I,  Ranavalomanjaka,  Queen  of  Madagascar, 
founded  this  house  of  prayer  on  the  thirteenth  of 
Adimizana,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  1869, 
as  a  house  of  prayer  for  the  service  of  God,  King  of 
Kings  and  Lord  of  Lords,  according  to  the  word  in 
the  Sacred  Scriptures  by  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,  who 
died  for  the  sins  of  all  men,  and  rose  again  for  the 
justification  and  salvation  of  all  who  believe  in  and 
love  Him.  For  these  reasons,  this  stone  house, 
founded  by  me  as  a  house  of  prayer,  cannot  be 
destroyed  by  any  one,  whoever  may  be  king  of  this 
land  for  ever  and  ever.  But  if  he  shall  destroy  this 
house  of  prayer  to  God  then  he  is  not  king  of  my 
land,  Madagascar.  Wherefore,  I  have  signed  my 
name  with  my  hand  and  the  seal  of  the  kingdom, 

"  Ranavalomanjaka, 

"  Queen  of  Madagascar." 

As  a  fit  accompaniment  of  this  royal  church,  stands 
also  in  the  capital  the  four  memorial  churches,  one  on 
the  summit  of  "  The  Rock  of  Hurling,"  one  where 
Rasalama  the  first  martyr  was  speared,  one  where  so 
many  suffered  cruel  and  often  fatal  imprisonment, 
and  one  where  the  rainbow  rested  over  the  burning 
pile.  The  first  stone  of  the  last-named  church  was 
placed  on  the  exact  spot  where  the  bones  of  the 
martyrs  were  afterwards  found. 

The  supporters  of  the  old  idolatry  and  superstitions 


A   CHRISTIAN    KINGDOM    ESTABLISHED.         149 

were  incensed  to  find  that  their  power  and  influence 
were  gone.  They  sent  their  leaders  to  the  palace  to 
summon  the  queen  to  return  to  the  religion  of  her 
ancestors.  When  she  refused  they  threatened  her  that 
the  idols  had  medicine  that  could  kill.  This  language 
was  judged  to  be  treasonable,  and  Ranavalona  replied  : 
"  I  will  burn  all  the  idols  of  my  ancestors,  but  as  to 
yours,  they  are  your  concern."  Then  she  sent  to  the 
place  where  the  national  idols  were  preserved,  and 
they  were  all  committed  to  the  flames  in  the  presence 
of  many  bystanders.  Officers  were  sent  the  next  day 
to  burn  all  the  royal  idols  throughout  the  land,  and 
great  numbers  of  the  people,  emboldened  by  the 
queen's  example,  did  the  same.  Many  prophecies  of 
disaster  were  uttered,  and  many  fears  of  evil  enter- 
tained at  these  bold  steps,  but  fortunately  none  of 
them  were  realised. 

Now  arose  a  cry  from  the  people  for  instruction  in 
the  new  religion.  They  said  :  "  We  have  lost  our 
old  gods  and  we  know  not  the  new  God,  send  us 
teachers."  The  prime  minister  consulted  with  the 
missionaries,  and  they  carefully  selected  one  hundred 
and  twenty-six  from  the  ranks  of  the  native  Christians, 
set  them  apart  for  the. work  of  teaching  or  preaching, 
and  sent  them  forth  throughout  the  land. 

It  is  impossible  to  give  any  adequate  idea  of  the 
impulse  given  by  Ranavalona  and  her  high-minded 
husband  to  every  form  of  moral  and  Christian 
progress  during  the  fifteen  years  that  she  ruled  over 
the  land.  She  strove  continually  to  elevate  the 
nation  so  that  it  might  become  equal  to  the  western 
nations  of  Christendom.  Schools  were  established 
everywhere,  and    compulsory  education   was   carried 


150   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

out.  Then  normal  schools,  high  schools,  and  theo- 
logical schools  were  all  built  and  set  going.  Churches 
were  built,  some  entirely  at  the  expense  of  the  queen 
and  her  husband,  and  some  partly  so.  The  Govern- 
ment was  reorganised  into  ten  departments,  and  a 
sufficient  staff  of  officers  appointed  to  each.  Trial  by 
jury  and  a  police  system  were  instituted.  Slavery  was 
firmly  prohibited,  and  when  she  found  that  her  edicts 
were  evaded,  she  and  her  husband  sacrificed  their 
private  fortune  and  gave  freedom  to  all  the  slaves  in 
the  island,  numbering  about  1 50,000. 

The  imperious  attitude  and  action  of  the  French 
towards  Madagascar  caused  the  queen  and  her 
Government  constant  anxiety.  On  one  occasion  she 
received  cruelly  hard  demands  from  them.  She 
replied  with  dignity  that  she  could  not  accede  to 
them  ;  and  then,  going  apart,  she  laid  the  letters 
before  God,  and  called  on  Him  who  is  mighty  to 
save  to  help  her.  She  sent  messengers  to  other 
nations  to  ask  their  help,  but  no  help  came.  Then 
she  summoned  a  grand  assembly  of  her  own  people, 
and  in  an  address  recounted  the  demands  of  the 
French.  She  declared  that  she  must  defend  the  land 
which  had  been  given  her ;  and  called  upon  the 
people  to  trust  in  God  and  prepare  themselves  to 
fight,  and,  if  need  be,  die  for  their  country.  One 
hundred  thousand  people  offered  their  services  to 
protect  her  and  their  nation.  The  French  invaded 
the  land  without  giving  her  any  formal  declaration 
of  war,  and  she  at  once  gave  notice  to  all  French 
residents,  traders,  and  Jesuit  priests  to  leave  the 
capital.  The  war  went  on,  and  the  French  showed 
an  insolence  of  demeanour  which  was  repulsive,  but 


A   CHRISTIAN    KINGDOM    ESTAr.IJSIIED.         15^ 

the  island   fever  and  the  immorality  of  their  troops 
kept  nearly  sixty  per  cent,  of  their  soldiers  on  the 
sick  list,  and  the  death-rate  through  these  causes  was 
forty  per  cent.     They  never  were   able  to  penetrate 
farther  up  the  island  than  the  war  guns  on  then-  ships 
could  be  used  to  protect  them,  and  if  they  ventured 
beyond  this  they  met  with  quick  and  costly  repulses. 
The  Malagasy  conducted  the  war  with  great  pru- 
dence and  even  success.   They  set  an  example  worthy 
to  be  followed  by  the  proudest  nations  of  the  west 
Ranavalona  sent  skilful  nurses  to  care  for  the  sick 
and  wounded,  forbade  any  intoxicating  liquors  to  be 
used  among  the  men  ;  and  no  female  camp-followers 
were  allowed.     At  the  camps  where  the  soldiers  were 
stationed  their  families  were  allowed  to  be  with  them, 
and  the  Christians  in    the  army   were   formed  into 
churches,  with  native  pastors  at  their  head.      Iwo 
services  were  held  every  Sabbath,  and  frequent  meet- 
ings during  the  week.      The  war  lasted  four  years, 
and  there  was  no  sign  of  moral  deterioration  m  the 
nation,  and  the  Malagasy  could  have  not  only  held 
their  own  for  a  longer  period,  but  have  made  the 
position  of  the  French  utterly  unendurable. 

While  the  war  was  in  progress  the  good  queen 
Ranavalona  II.  died.  Her  health  had  been  faihng 
for  some  months,  and  she  recognised  that  death  was 
approaching.  On  the  12th  of  July,  1883,  she  joined 
in  the  evening  prayers,  and  then  summoned  her 
husband  and  her  niece,  who  was  to  succeed  her  to 
her  side  Then  she  expressed  her  unfaltering  trust  in 
Christ  and  charged  them  that  her  kingdom  was  still  to 
rest  upon  God,  that  religion  was  still  to  be  encouraged 
and  that  the  French  were  never  to  have  one  foot  of 


152    MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

the  land.  Early  on  the  next  day  she  passed  away, 
and  was  buried  quietly,  at  her  own  request,  in  order 
that  her  people  might  not  be  disturbed  from  their 
efforts  to  resist  the  French. 

During  the  whole  course  of  her  reign  Ranavalona  II. 
had  been  a  high-minded  Christian.  No  matter  what 
amount  of  state  business  was  on  hand  she  never 
omitted  to  spend  from  two  to  three  hours  a-day  in 
the  study  of  the  Bible  and  prayer,  and  .she  took  no 
important  step  without  seeking  special  guidance  from 
God.  Happy  is  the  people  whose  rulers  are  so  wise 
and  so  holy. 

The  niece  of  the  late  queen  now  ascended  the 
throne  under  the  name  of  Ranavalona  III.  She  was 
twenty  years  of  age.  She  had  received  a  thorough 
education  in  the  Friends'  School  and  the  London 
Missionary  Society's  High  School,  and  was  a  thorough 
Christian.  Immediately  on  her  accession  she  prepared 
to  incite  her  people  to  new  efforts  to  defend  their 
country.  She  called  assemblies  of  the  people,  ex- 
plained to  them  the  state  of  public  affairs,  expressed 
before  them  her  confidence  in  God,  and  called  upon 
them  to  be  firm  and  brave  in  their  conduct.  They 
responded  to  her  with  loyal  enthusiasm. 

At  one  of  these  assemblies  affairs  were  threatening 
and  the  people  dispirited.  Then  the  queen  called  upon 
the  venerable  prime  minister  to  offer  prayer  in  behalf 
of  the  nation.  He  bared  his  head,  stood  elevated  before 
the  mass  of  about  a  hundred  thousand  men,  and  sent 
up  a  fervent  and  lofty  prayer,  while  the  multitude 
uttered  responses,  deep  and  earnest,  which  sounded 
like  rolls  of  subdued  thunder.  Indeed  the  people  gave 
themselves  to  prayer  during  the  war  in  a  marvellous 


A   CHRISTIAN   KINGDOM   ESTABLISHED.         I  53 

manner.  One  missionary,  who  was  in  the  country  at 
the  time,  says  that  the  central  provinces  were  Hke  a 
huge  prayer  meeting.  He  says :  "  I  have  seen  a 
young  man  in  his  pulpit  kneel  down  and  pray  with 
tears  running  down  his  cheeks,  that  God  would  be 
pleased  to  take  the  French  soldiers  back  again  to 
their  wives  and  families  safe  and  sound."  It  is  a 
most  remarkable  thing  that  all  the  missionaries  testify 
that  the  churches  became  more  robust  in  spiritual  life 
during  the  war.  While  the  Malagasy  bravely  with- 
stood the  insolent  invaders  they  never  showed  any 
bitterness  nor  resentment  towards  them,  and  indeed 
sought  to  fulfil  the  Divine  injunction,  "  Love  your 
enemies." 

God  did  send  the  people  deliverance.  The  French 
were  forced  to  withdraw  from  the  conflict,  and  make 
the  best  terms  they  could.  They  had  lost  about 
12,000  good  soldiers  and  a  hundred  million  francs 
through  the  war  and  had  gained  no  real  advantage. 
The  Malagasy  had  not  lost  many  men,  save  by  fever, 
and  they  had  retained  all  their  cities.  So  the  French 
force  was  called  home,  and  a  Commissioner  was  sent 
out  to  negotiate  terms  of  peace.  Those  terms  were 
most  unjust  to  Madagascar,  but  France  was  the 
greatest  loser.  It  had  to  give  up  the  harbour  of  San 
Diego  Suarez  with  the  territory  round  it,  while  the 
Malagasy  had  to  pay  an  indemnity  of  about  ;^ 400,000. 
The  internal  affairs  of  Madagascar  were  to  be  entirely 
in  the  hands  of  the  queen  and  her  Government,  but  a 
French  Ambassador  was  to  reside  at  Antananarivo 
with  military  attendants,  and  no  transaction  with  any 
foreign  government  was  to  be  undertaken  without  his 
consent.     The  Romish  churches  and  schools  were  to 


154   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

be  placed  on  the  same  footing  as  the  Protestant  ones. 
The  treaty  has  been  a  source  of  great  trouble  to  the 
Malagasy,  arising  both  from  the  arrogance  of  the 
French  resident  and  from  the  encroachments  of  the 
Jesuits.  The  latter  determined  in  1886  to  capture 
the  schools  and  colleges  of  the  capital.  They 
fomented  treason,  and  became  more  and  more 
imperious  until  the  prime  minister  arrested  them 
and  broke  up  their  establishment.  There  are  many 
dangers  threatening  the  welfare  of  Madagascar  from 
these  sources,  but  if  future  sovereigns  and  statesmen 
still  maintain  their  firm  hold  on  an  open  Bible,  liberty 
of  conscience,  and  trust  in  God,  as  those  of  the  last 
twenty-four  years  have  done,  the  happiness  of  the 
nation  is  secured,  and  Providence  alone  knows  how 
useful  a  mission  it  may  fulfil  in  the  coming  ages. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 


PROGRESS,    PAST   AND    PRESENT. 

"  Where  prophet's  word  and  martyr's  blood, 
And  prayers  of  saints  were  sown, 
We,  to  their  labours  entering  in, 
Would  reap  where  they  have  strown." — S.  Longfellow. 

SOME  reference  has  already  been  made  to  the 
Roman  Catholic  missions  estabHshed  in  Mada- 
gascar in  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  cen- 
turies. In  consequence  of  the  arrogant  and 
persecuting  spirit  shown  by  the  priests  that  mission 
was  summarily  extinguished.  Radama  I.  and  Rana- 
valona  I.  both  declined  to  allow  Romish  priests  to 
enter  Antananarivo,  although  two  Jesuits  settled 
there  in  disguise.  These  fomented  plots  against 
Ranavalona  and  were  banished  ;  but  when  Radama  II. 
proclaimed  religious  liberty  in  the  land  a  large 
number  of  Jesuit  priests,  lay  brothers,  and  Sisters  of 
Mercy  promptly  came  to  the  island  and  pushed  their 
way  to  the  capital.  They  built  there  two  chapels, 
and  opened  several  rooms  in  villages  of  the  district. 
They  also  had  a  farm  settlement  near  the  city.     The 

155 


156   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

Sisters  of  Mercy  did  much  careful  and  kind  nursing 
among  the  sick,  and  all  the  agents  have  worked 
assiduously  to  establish  an  extensive  mission. 

But  they  have  not  succeeded ;  partly  because  it  is 
a  French  mission,  and  the  Malagasy  properly  consider 
the  French  to  be  their  opponents  in  every  respect ; 
and  partly  because  of  the  bold  and  insolent  behaviour 
of  which  the  Jesuit  priests  have  been  guilty  on  several 
occasions.  When  Queen  Ranavalona  II.  ordered  the 
French  to  leave  the  capital  on  war  being  commenced 
against  her,  the  Jesuits  proposed  to  walk  to  the  coast 
and  carry  their  goods,  but  the  queen  sent  them  a 
large  number  of  bearers  with  stores  of  provisions,  and 
a  military  escort.  Afterwards  they  declared  they  had 
been  robbed  by  the  escort,  and  demanded  compensa- 
tion to  the  amount  of  i^io,ooo,  and  then  at  the  close  of 
the  war  increased  the  claim  to  ^^50,000  for  the  mission 
property  they  had  had  to  abandon.  This  indemnity 
they  received,  and  then  when  they  returned  to  the 
capital  they  demanded  the  restoration  of  all  the 
property  for  which  they  had  received  compensation. 
By  acting  in  this  spirit  they  prevented  the  natives 
uniting  with  them  in  large  numbers  ;  and  they 
present  a  contrast  to  the  manner  in  which  the  agents 
of  all  Protestant  societies  have  conducted  themselves. 

Dr.  Ryan,  Bishop  of  Mauritius,  took  effective 
measures  to  establish  Church  of  England  missions  in 
those  portions  of  the  island  which  were  then  untouched 
by  Christianity.  Mr.  Baker,  formerly  missionary  at 
Antananarivo  but  then  in  Australia,  translated  the 
prayer-book  into  the  Malagasy  language,  and  it  was 
printed  in  London  by  the  Christian  Knowledge  Society. 
In   1864  Revs.  Messrs.  Campbell  and   Maundrell  of 


PROGRESS,   PAST  AND    PRESENT.  1 57 

the  Church  Missionary  Society  commenced  a  mission 
amongst  the  tribes  in  the  north-east  districts.  They 
laboured  with  great  devotion  there  for  about  eighteen 
months  but  did  not  reahse  the  success  they  expected. 
The  population  was  scattered  and  unsuitable  for  the 
headquarters  of  a  mission  enterprise.  They  removed 
to  an  important  seaport  about  seventy  miles  south, 
and  succeeded  in  forming  congregations  in  several 
villages  of  the  district.  Mr.  Campbell  in  1868  took  a 
journey  southward  and  carried  the  Gospel  to  the 
Betsileo  tribes.  He  found  this  a  most  promising 
harvest  field.  It  was  deemed  advisable  after  much 
hard  and  successful  labour  to  transfer  the  missions  of 
this  Society  to  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the 
Gospel  in  Foreign  Parts,  in  1874. 

This  latter  Society  entered  Madagascar  in  1864,  and 
commenced  work  at  Tamatave.  Revs.  Messrs.  Hey 
and  Holding  the  two  agents  who  first  landed  were  well 
received,  and  in  the  course  of  two  years  had  built 
churches  at  Tamatave  and  at  Foule  Point,  forty  miles 
to  the  north.  They  also  opened  three  small  places  on 
the  coast.  At  the  larger  places  Sunday  and  week-day 
schools  were  soon  established.  Classes  for  sewing,  sing- 
ing, Bible  reading,  and  for  training  catechumens  were 
put  into  operation.  A  printing-press  also  was  intro- 
duced and  several  youths  were  taught  to  work  it.  The 
agents  of  the  Society  were  subject  to  much  trial  by 
the  island  fever.  Mr.  Holding  was  obliged  to  go  to 
Mauritius  for  change  of  climate  several  times.  Mr. 
Hey,  after  labouring  with  heroic  devotion,  died  at  sea 
in  returning  from  Mauritius.  The  church  at  Tama- 
tave still  exists,  and  the  work  among  the  Betsileos  is 
going  on,  but  the  headquarters  of  the  Mission  is  trans- 


158    MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS. 

ferred  to  the  capital,  where  a  bishop  resides.  There 
are  about  10,000  adherents  of  this  Mission  in  the 
country  and  112  native  preachers  and  teachers. 

In  1867  the  Society  of  Friends  sent  out  several 
agents  to  assist,  mainly  in  the  work  of  promoting 
Christian  education.  The  first  to  arrive  were  Mr. 
Sewell  of  Hitchin,  and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Street  from  the 
United  States.  They  were  well  provided  with  educa- 
tional appliances,  and  rendered  invaluable  service,  both 
in  raising  the  standard  of  education  and  in  extending 
its  benefits.  They  did  not  attempt  to  commence 
another  religious  society,  but  with  real  catholicity 
united  with  the  existing  arrangements.  Indeed  Mr. 
Sewell,  seeing  the  famine  of  preachers,  became  the 
virtual  pastor  of  two  of  the  native  churches,  and 
worked  with  as  much  devotion  in  them  as  though 
they  had  belonged  to  his  own  sect. 

The  Friends  set  up  a  printing  establishment  in  the 
capital,  and  have  issued  from  it  many  valuable  educa- 
tional and  Christian  books. 

In  1866  two  missionaries,  Revs.  Messrs.  Eng  and 
Nillson  arrived  at  the  capital  from  the  National 
Church  of  Norway  and  Sweden.  They  did  not 
attempt  to  commence  a  rival  mission  there,  but 
remained  to  learn  the  language  and  to  consult  with 
the  English  missionaries  as  to  the  most  suitable 
localities  in  which  to  commence  their  work.  They 
afterwards  went  to  Betafo,  an  important  place  thirty 
miles  to  the  south  of  the  city  in  North  Betsileo. 
They  also  went  among  the  Sakalavas.  They  have 
now  20.000  adherents,  and  conduct  300  schools  with 
30,000  scholars. 

The  London  Missionary  Society  thankfully  reckons 


PROGRESS,   PAST   AND   PRESENT.  I  59 

the  Mission  it  conducts  in  Madagascar  as  one  of  the 
noblest  jewels  in  its  crown.  It  maintains  a  contingent 
of  thirty-two  missionaries  who  superintend  the  Theo- 
logical Institution,  the  normal  and  other  schools,  and 
take  charge  of  the  various  districts  over  which  the 
Mission  extends.  The  Imerina  Province,  in  which  the 
capital  city  is  situated,  is  virtually  Christianised,  as  is 
also  a  large  portion  of  the  adjoining  province  of  Bet- 
sileo.  In  the  whole  Mission  of  this  Society  there  are 
']6o  ordained  native  ministers,  and  more  than  5000 
other  preachers  and  teachers.  Over  60,000  church 
members  are  recorded,  and  the  adherents,  exclusive 
of  nearly  100,000  scholars,  number  200,000.  These 
are  magnificent  results,  and  certainly  rival  the  most 
glorious  triumphs  of  missionary  zeal  in  this  century. 

To  present  these  statistics  is  to  give  but  the  faintest 
idea  of  the  work  done  in  Madagascar  by  missionary 
enterprise.  The  progress  of  the  people  in  mental 
and  moral  worth  is  amazing.  The  civilised  arts  have 
been  taught  and  are  now  commonly  practised  ;  the 
commercial  and  industrial  resources  of  the  country 
have  been  developed  ;  the  language  has  been  reduced 
to  system,  and  a  literature  has  been  created  ;  educa- 
tional institutions  have  been  freely  scattered  in  every 
part  of  the  provinces,  and,  above  all,  churches,  wherein 
a  full  and  free  Gospel  is  proclaimed,  in  the  name  of 
the  Lord  Jesus,  are  dotted  thickly  over  the  central 
provinces  and  stretch  from  the  capital  down  to  the 
coast  in  almost  every  direction. 

The  Sovereign  and  the  chief  members  of  the 
Government  are  devoted  Christians.  The  greatest 
danger  the  Malagasy  have  to  fear  in  the  future  is  the 
evils  which  may  be  communicated   by  contact  with 


l6o   MADAGASCAR:  ITS  MISSIONARIES  AND  MARTYRS 

foreign  traders  and  the  drink  traffic.  At  the  seaports 
horrible  scenes  are  frequently  to  be  witnessed  by  reason 
of  these  things,  and  in  the  production  of  them  England 
has  no  small  share  and  responsibility.  How  long  will 
the  same  fountain  send  forth  the  living  waters  and  the 
bitter  waters  of  death,  side  by  side?  The  story  of 
Christianity  in  Madagascar  is  one  of  the  brightest 
evidences  ever  furnished  of  the  power  of  the  Gospel  to 
grapple  with  and  overthrow  the  most  revolting  forms 
of  sin,  even  in  its  oldest  and  strongest  refuges.  It  illus- 
trates the  influence  of  the  Gospel  to  purify  and  con- 
secrate the  most  degraded  human  hearts  and  make 
them  the  true  temples  of  the  Divine  Spirit.  It  speaks 
with  inspiring  voice  to  the  universal  Church,  calling 
upon  it  to  arise  in  its  full  strength  and  to  go  forth  in 
the  name  of  its  glorious  Head  to  attempt  and  dare 
greater  things  for  His  sake  until  by  its  faith  and 
valour  the  rebel  spirit  is  cast  forth  from  the  heart  of 
man,  and  Christ  is  Head  over  all  principality  and 
power. 


THE   END. 


LORIMER   AND   GILLIES,    PRINTERS,    EDINBURGH. 


x.i9:vti^: 


BW9733  .T75 

Madagascar :  its  missionaries  and 

Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


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